Eugene's Treasure part 2
by SparkleWolf7000
Summary: Eugene and Rapunzel just adopted a girl and had a baby but now when their family is threatened, what will they do to save themselves? Who wants the royal family dead?  awful summary.  SEQUEL TO Eugene's Treasure.  CHAPTER 27 IS UP!
1. Chapter 1

Eugene woke to a scream coming from somewhere. He sat up quickly and listened and heard his name being called.

"Eugene! EUGENE! Come quick!"

Eugene could tell it was Rapunzel. He jumped out of his bed, threw on his robe and raced to where he heard Rapunzel still calling him. He found her in the nursery and saw her clutching their two year old girl, crying hard and repeating "no no" He rushed to Rapunzels side and picked up his fragile daughter. She appeared lifeless and she was hardly breathing. Her eyes were closed and she looked pale.

"Suzie! Susan!" He said trying to shake her awake. He brushed the girl's dark hair she had inherited from him out of her face. Rapunzel remained sitting in the rocking chair with her hands covering her face and crying hard.

"no matter how much Eugene shouted her name or shook her, he could not get the princess to open her eyes and breath.

"no no NO! PLEASE SUSAN! WAKE UP! Wake up! Wake…up.."

A Tear fell from his eye as his voice died off.

Their screams and cries were so loud that Rapunzels parents ran to where they were and they saw Rapunzel and Eugene on the floor of the nursery. Rapunzel holding her baby close and Eugene holding Rapunzel with one hand and the other was on his daughters head. They called the finest doctors in the entire kingdom but they all had lost hope for the child.

The funeral was held on a rainy day and the whole kingdom grieved for the loss of their beloved princess, Susan. Some say it was disease, some the flu, some said she was poisoned. But the doctors said it was from a disease she had. Maybe she had the flu. No one knew for sure.

A year passed and it was time for the festival of lights to begin everyone was getting excited. The town streets were decorated and so was the castle.

Eugene walked into their room and saw Rapunzel sitting at her vanity looking down at her dress. Eugene walked up to her and kissed her on the head.

"you ok?"

"I'm fine" she said with a sigh.

Eugene could tell what she was thinking about.

"I miss her too." He said almost in a whisper

Rapunzel turned to him and buried her face into his chest and sobbed.

"Shh, I know." He wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"C'mon now, smile for me" he lifted her chin and looked into her watery eyes.

Rapunzel managed to put on a weak smile then sighed.

Later that day, the kingdom had a parade and Eugene and Rapunzel rode in an open carriage and waved to their people. Later the people danced and Eugene and Rapunzel walked around greeting the people under the watchful eyes of the guards.

Eugene stood in front of an alley talking to people when he heard a sound behind him. He turned but saw nothing. He then politely excused himself and went to investigate. He heard a man talking loudly in an angry tone. The alley was dark, and then he saw a light coming through a window and peeked through it. He saw a rather large man older than him but younger than his father in law. About forty he thought to himself. The man was almost yelling at something but he couldn't see what. He could hear the man clearly.

"Don't you ever run away from me again! Do you hear me? I'm talking to you!" The man walked over to the corner he was yelling at and dragged out a little girl by the arm. It was clear that the small child was scared and crying. The man raised his hand to hit the child when Eugene jumped through the cracked open door.

The man looked at Eugene and cried "who the devil are you?"

Eugene walked closer to the man and when the man realized who he was he backed off and let go of the girl.

The little girl saw this tall handsome man as her hero and ran to Eugene and hugged his leg. She was still crying hard. After giving the man a glare as if to say back off, Eugene kneeled down to the sobbing child.

"What's your name little one?" Eugene said as he gently brushed the girls blond curls from her sweet face.

The little girl wiped her eyes and answered "Juwea"

"Julia?" Eugene said as he placed her on his lap.

She nodded.

"How old are you Julia?"

"fwee" she said as she held up five fingers.

Eugene smiled and chuckled a little.

"What are you crying about?"

"He was being mean" she said pointing to the man as he stood in the corner.

"she's a liar!" the man said taking a step forward.

Eugene stood up to protect himself and her in case he came any closer.

The man once again backed up.

"Small children" Eugene began "In my experience, tend to be extremely truthful when threatened." He said glaring at the man.

Eugene bent down to the girl's level once more. "Where are your parents?"

The little girl just looked down at her rags. "They went to heaven" she said softly

"Oh" he said quietly. After a moment of thinking he picked her up and walked out the door.

"Hey, wait! Where are you taking her? She's mine!"

Eugene stopped and looked at the man. "Are you related?"

"Well, no"

"Did you adopt her?"

"No"

"Then how sir did you come to own her?"

"I…I found her on the street three weeks ago. I took her in, fed her, cared for her, loved her!

Eugene looked down at the child lying in his arms. She was thin, terribly thin and she had bruises all over her. He knew what it was like to be an orphan and feel abandoned and he wasn't about to let it happen to this sweet little girl.

"Yet she looks starved and dirty and bruised, and trying to run away" he paused for a moment "good day sir" and with that, Eugene carried the child into town, through the crowds, through the dancers and got up into the carriage.

Rapunzel saw Eugene holding something from afar. It was getting late and she was tired so she made her way to the carriage. As she stepped up into it, she realized that the thing in her husband's arms was a small child. Eugene just looked at her and smiled.

"Aww! Who's this? "She said as she stroked the girls blond curls.

The frightened girl grabbed Eugene's blue vest and pulled herself closer to his warm body. Eugene smiled down at her.

"This is Julia" he said answering his wife's question.

"She was kinda in a tight spot so I helped her" Eugene gave Rapunzel a look as if to say I'll tell you later.

Rapunzel just winked and smiled. "Eugene"

He looked up at her big green eyes.

"Let's take her back to the castle for tonight or at least til we get everything worked out."

He nodded.

The carriage started to move with a jolt and Julia jumped and pulled herself even closer into her protector's strong arms. Eugene could tell she was frightened by the way she clinged to him. He held her tight to make her feel safe.

After a couple of hours of meeting people and eating, and getting some new cloths, Julia yawned and was tired from her adventure into the grand palace of her hero. Rapunzel sat in her rocking chair by the fire place. She was knitting a scarf for Julia. Eugene sat in his arm chair which also was near the fire place. He just hummed softly while rubbing Julia's back who was snuggled up against him.

"hey, Eugene" Rapunzel whispered to him.

"hmm?" he responded softly.

"where are her parents?"

"shes an orphan"

"oh! The poor dea…."

"shhh!" he interrupted her. "shes asleep"

"oh, sorry" she whispered "its getting late and im tired. Im going to go to bed." She said as she rose from the rocker.

"ill put her to bed" said Eugene looking up at Rapunzel.

"go ahead and use the nursery, I had the maids clean it up today. Its all ready and waiting for her."

"thanks"

"k, ill be in the bedroom, goodnight Julia! She whispered as she left the room.

Eugene slowly rose from his chair, trying not to wake her. She moaned a little but then was silent. He walked down the hallway to the room next to theirs. He stopped before entering. This would be the first time he entered the room since his daughters' death. He took a deep breath and entered. The room was bright and cheery. The maids had taken away the crib and had replaced it with a rather large bed for such a little child. He gently placed her on the bed and pulled the blankets over her until they reached her tiny shoulders. He rubbed her cheek ever so softly and watched her sleep for a minute, then he blew out the candle that was next to her bed and left the room as silent as a mouse.

The walked to the door of their bedroom and entered to find Rapunzel sitting on the bed waiting for him. they exchanged smiles then Eugene walked over to his closet and took off his vest and boots. Then after he had finished changing, he ran to the bed and leaped into it surprising Rapunzel. They both laughed and got under the sheets. Rapunzel snuggled up next to him and sighed. Eugene kissed her on the head and thought for a moment.

E: "what are we going to do with her?"

R: "well, I suppose we could find a suitable family for her"

E: "why wont she talk or interact to any else but me?"

R: "you came to her rescue, you slayed the dragon…you're her hero and she's counting on you to protect her. I bet she's never met anyone like you."

E: "handsome? Smart? clever?"

Rapunzel hit him playfully. "someone who would stand up for her!" she said giggling.

Eugene just laughed. Then his expression became serious.

"Can….can we…."

"What?" Rapunzel asked looking at him in the eye.

"k..Keep her"

Rapunzel thought a moment "why don't we let her stay with us for a few days and see how it goes?"

"Sounds good" he replied with a grin "good night love"

"Good night Eugene"

The next morning Rapunzel had to wake up early to go to a meeting with her parents. She let Eugene sleep however. Before she left, she glanced at her love lying in their bed. His face pleasant, his eyebrows relaxed and his dark wavy hair upon his pillow. She blew him a kiss and went to her meeting.

Later, Eugene woke to a noise that he kind of recognized but wasn't sure what it was. He could have sworn he heard someone screaming. He listened in the dead silence of the early morning. Then he heard it again, it was louder this time and It was someone screaming but who? Just then he remembered. Julia! He grabbed his robe, slipped it on and ran to the girls room. He opened the doors and saw Julia tossing and turning violently on her bed.

"NO! NO! MAMA! NO!" she screamed.

Eugene ran to the bed and tried to wake her up.

"Julia! JULIA! WAKE UP! He shook her a little.

Julia opened her eyes and saw Eugene. She was breathing hard and was sweating a little.

In his attempt not to scare her any more than she was, he spoke softly and slowly.

"Shhh, it's ok Julia shhh" he said, brushing her hair away from her face.

Julia started to cry, so Eugene sat on the bed and held her for a long time, speaking to her in soothing tones and rubbing her back to calm her down.

"shhh, everything is fine, I'm here"

Julia squeezed him tightly and cried and cried.

After a while, Eugene laid her back down.

"Try to go back to sleep now" he said softly while tucking her in.

"No!" Julia shouted making Eugene jump.

"Don't leave me pwease!" she said as she jumped up and hugged him tightly.

"No Julia, I have to go and you have to sleep." He said putting her back down on the bed.

"But if you leave, then he will hurt me!" she said with fear in her eyes.

"What? No one's going to hurt you Julia now go to sleep." He didn't want to leave her, he really didn't, but he had things to do and he couldn't baby-sit all day.

"No Teddy no!" she teared up again

"Julia I have to….what did you call me?" Eugene stopped

"Teddy, don't go!" she said looking up at him with clear blue puppy-dog eyes.

Eugene just couldn't say no to those puppy-dog eyes and sighed deeply.

"Teddy stay?" she asked with a hopeful heart.

"Yeah…Teddy stay" he said smiling

"With a huge sigh of relief, she threw her short arms around his neck and giggled.

Rapunzel came back from her meeting and her breakfast and entered the nursery to find Julia in a beautiful dress and Eugene having tea together.

"Rapunzel tried not to laugh at the sight of Eugene sitting at a tiny table with teddy bears surrounding him but she couldn't help it, she let out a little giggle.

Eugene smiled sheepishly and got up from the tiny table and chairs and walked over to Rapunzel.

"Good morning" he said as he leaned in and planted a kiss on Rapunzels lips.

"good morning, sleep ok?"

"uh, I did but I'm not so sure that she did." He pointed at Julia with his chin.

"why do you think so, Eugene?"

"well, she had a nightmare and from what I could tell….it was pretty bad." He said with a frown.

"how bad?"

"like when you used to dream about Gothel and me dying remember?"

"yes, how could I forget!"

"I just worry about her"

"Eugene?"

"what?"

"I…oh nothing" Rapunzel looked down

"um, ok? Hey, you alright?" he said holding her shoulders.

"yeah…im..im…uh." Rapunzel lost her footing.

"whoa, easy Blondie" said Eugene as he caught her.

"whoa, im…I feel…real..di..dizzy.."

"Maybe you should lay down for a while." Eugene helped Rapunzel get to their bed and laid her down gently. He then felt her head for a temperature.

"you feel warm, I'm calling the doctor." Eugene got up to leave but Rapunzel grabbed his wrist.

"don't…Eugene…I'm..uhh…fine."

"no you're not, look at you, you can hardly think straight." He said with worry in his eyes.

"I just need…some rest" she said weakly.

"well…if you don't feel better after that I'm calling him."

Rapunzel nodded.

Eugene went back to the nursery but didn't see Julia.

"Julia? Julia? Where are you?"

Worried, Eugene franticly searched the nursery but couldn't find her.

"Julia?" he started to panic. He peeked under the bed and saw Julia peacefully sleeping. Eugene sighed with relief and managed to pull her out and place her on the bed and covered her with the blankets. He realized he wasn't as sad anymore, he was happier having a little person to watch over and protect. He smiled and kissed her softly on the cheek. Julia smiled and moaned a little but nothing else. Content, Eugene left the room and took a walk in the palace gardens.

An hour later, Eugene returned to Rapunzels room and gently kissed his sleeping beauty on the cheek. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked at the flowers he had borrowed from the gardens. Rapunzel stirred and turned to see Eugene sitting next to her. She rubbed his back and it startled him. she slightly giggled and he turned around and presented the bouquet. "for you my lady" he said proudly as she grasped the flowers.

"oh, they're beautiful! Thank you!" He grinned and bent down and kissed her tenderly on her lips.

"Feeling any better?"

"A little"

"What's a little?" he raised up with worry plain in his amber eyes.

"Really Eugene, I'm fine." She said putting on a weak smile.

"hmm." He replied looking at her with an unsure face. Rapunzel had lied to him before and she wasn't any good at it. When she lied, it was always for a good reason, like when she told him that she would be fine when Gothel was about to take her away. But he could tell she was lying then, and he could tell she was lying now, something was up.

"Your sure?" he said flowing his hands through her short hair.

"Absolutely" she said rubbing his other hand. She knew how worried Eugene gets when she isn't feeling good, but she wasn't sick…she was just a little sidetracked at the moment…

Late that night, Rapunzel woke to stomach pains and feeling sick. She felt warm and dizzy. Slowly, she pulled back the bed sheets and slipped out of bed trying not to wake a Sleeping Eugene next to her. She walked swaying from the light headedness she was having, and found her way to the powder room. She then felt really sick and threw up in a waste bucket. She tried to be quiet but her chokes and coughs were loud and they strained her voice into loud wheezing sounds. Eugene herd a painful choke and got out of bed and found Rapunzel in the powder room. She choked once more over the waste bucket that sent a jolt through her body.

"Rapunzel? Are you alright?" Eugene tried to calm her by rubbing her back. He found a towel and cleaned her face.

Rapunzel rose slowly, moaning. Her face was pale and she looked tired. Her head spun and she lost balance. Eugene caught her and lifted her up into his strong arms bridal-style.

"your sick and Im calling the doctor" he said carrying her back into the bedroom. He gently laid her down and felt her head again. She was burning up. Eugene dampened a towel and put it to her head.

"Eu…Eugene" she stammered

"shhh, just calm down blondie." He rose and opened the bedrooms doors and summoned a guard to call the royal doctor. He then came back and sat by her side and kept dabbing her head with the cool cloth.

"I..know whats happening" she said straining to talk over her sore throat.

"whats that?" Eugene looked into her green eyes and waited for an answer.

"Eugene…Im..im.." Rapunzel was so dizzy she could hardly keep her eyes open.

"you can tell me later" he said as he stroked his wife's hair.

"no…Eugene im…pr..pregnant." she said softly looking into his light brown eyes. A smile appeared on her mouth as she waited for his response.

"y…you…your…." His eyes widened and he gasped for breath. He tried to talk but was too stunned. He started panting real hard when Rapunzel squeezed his hand.

"please don't freak out!" she said quickly.

"AAA…..? ? He finished tucking his hands under his arms and rocked back and forth nervously with a slight goofy grin on his face.

"A little while I guess?" She said giggling.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Wow, I didn't think people would like this story but apparently you do! Please comment! I'm having a bit of writers block.**

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 2

The bright morning sun shone through the large windows of the bedroom. The warm rays danced across Eugene's sleeping face. He stirred slightly and opened his eyes, blinking trying to see through the blinding sun. Suddenly a small figure popped up and blocked the light from his hazel eyes.

"Julia?" he said sleepily.

"Goo moring teddy!" said the little girl, smiling. "will you pway hide n seek wiff me?" she batted her long eyelashes in the most adorable way possible" "pweeeeeeeze!" she added at the end.

"Uh, maybe in a little while, ok?" he said rubbing his face. Just then he remembered what Rapunzel had told him. He pushed back the heavy covers and jumped out of bed. Julia jumped back to avoid from being knocked over. Eugene threw on his vest and boots and ran out of the room and down the hallway.

"Teddy, wait!" Julia called after him but her voice was drowned out by his lungs heaving for air as he ran down the halls looking in each room, searching for Rapunzel. He wanted to tell her again how happy he was because he _had_ freaked out last night when he learned that she was carrying his child. He darted in and out of rooms and ran into the kings weapon and game room. Animal heads decorated the walls along with several swords and hunting knives. But that didn't bother him, he was just looking for Rapunzel. He dashed out of the room and down the long stairs.

Meanwhile, Julia had been doing her best to keep up with him. her little legs ran as fast as she could as she zipped into various rooms looking for her protector. Without him, she felt scared and vulnerable. She finally made her way down the hall and skidded to a stop when she entered the king's weapon and game room. She shrieked as she looked at the strange animal heads on the wall. She turned away only to see more hideous ones on the other wall. She looked away again and saw all sorts of odd knives and swords. All of them looking very sharp and unwelcoming. All the animal heads seemed to stare at her. She finally burst out crying and ran out of the room. Her hands covered her eyes as she turned a corner.

Eugene had found Rapunzel eating breakfast with her parents. He had pulled her aside and told her how excited and happy he was. Everything in his life was perfect. He had a home, a loving wife, and now a new baby…and also there was Julia who put a smile on his face every day.

Suddenly there was a scream that was followed by a slight banging noise. It echoed through the silent halls of the castle. Eugene and Rapunzel exchanged looks, both wondering what that was. Then Eugene froze and remembered he had left Julia alone. He quickly took off down the hall, turned a corner and skidded to a stop. His breathing stopped, his heart sank. There at the bottom of the stairs was Julia. Her body limp on the floor, Her eyes closed.

**Oh no! What's going to happen? Please comment if you would like me to continue!**


	3. Chapter 3

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 3

Eugene paced franticly outside of the bedroom doors. He clutched his fists and ran his hands through his hair. He silently cursed himself for leaving Julia alone. Rapunzel watched helplessly as her husband mentally beat himself. She rose from her chair and walked over to him. Eugene was currently leaning against the wall, rubbing his face. She placed her hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

"Eugene" she turned him around and held his hands. "It wasn't your fault. Julia's a strong girl, she'll be fine."

Eugene sighed and looked into her green eyes. Rapunzel gazed into her husband's hazel eyes, which were a little misty.

Suddenly the doors opened and the queen stepped out. Rapunzel went to and took the wash basin from her hands. "Mother" Rapunzel started. "Let me do this, you need to take a break for a little while." The queen nodded and closed the door behind Rapunzel as she entered the bedroom.

The queen sighed and sat in one of the chairs. She looked up to see Eugene pacing again. "Eugene" she whispered. He kept pacing. "Eugene" she called again louder this time. Eugene looked up at his mother in law slightly. "come sit down" she motioned to the chair next to her. Eugene numbly obeyed.

He sat down on the sofa and buried his face in his hands which rested on his knees. The queen sighed and rubbed his back gently. "It's going to be alright." She said in a soothing tone.

"I'm not meant for this" Eugene said still buried in his hands.

"what's that?" the queen asked

"being a father." He said as he lifted his head and looked at the queen sadly.

"what? Why would you say that? You make a wonderful fa…" but the queen was cut off as Eugene rose and started talking in a frustrated tone.

"I messed up! I can't do this!" he said loudly then his voice turned soft. "I couldn't even save my own daughter from dying." He looked down.

The queen knew exactly how he felt. She stood up and walked over to him.

"Now you listen to me Eugene Fitzherbert." She said softly as she gently grabbed his shoulders.

"You are one of the best men I have ever met. You're brave, have a kind spirit but most of all you've got a heart, and a longing to be passionate!" She looked into his tear filled eyes. "you don't think I felt the same way when that witch took Rapunzel?" he looked up at her. "you have to believe in yourself Eugene…no matter what." The Queen laid her soft hand on his cheek and wiped away a tear that had fallen from his eye. Eugene didn't know what to say. He had never had a mother figure before but he seemed to like it. Sighing, he laid his head on her shoulder and hugged her. This caught the queen by surprise but after a second, returned the hug.

A moment later the doors opened and Rapunzel came out. The queen and Eugene both waited for her to say something. She just gave them a slight smile to comfort them, grabbed Eugene's hand and lead him into the bedroom.

Eugene's heart crumbled into a million pieces when he saw the tiny girl sleeping in the bed. She looked calm and peaceful despite the sling her arm was in.

Rapunzel squeezed her husband's hand as they watched helplessly as the royal doctor collected his instruments and put them in his black bag.

"that's all I can do for now" he said with a frown. Eugene tensed, sensing the doctor had a bad feeling about Julia's injuries. "I will return shortly, for now she needs rest." He bowed at the prince and princess of Corona and left the room. The queen thanked him on his way out.

Rapunzel went over to the sleeping girl and gently tucked her in. "How bad is she hurt?" Eugene swallowed hard. He knew it was his fault, all his fault for leaving her alone.

"Well" Rapunzel started not looking up at him. "Her arm is broken" she looked up to look at Eugene. Eugene sat on the bed and covered his face with his hands. His world had shattered. How could he be so heartless and uncaring? Rapunzel quickly grabbed his shoulders. "oh Eugene, it wasn't your fault!" she said quickly, trying to comfort him. "Other than that, she only has a few bruises!" she tried to reassure him but nothing worked. Eugene had let Julia down and Rapunzel down and Susan down, and he knew it. He was sorry, he was so sorry. Eugene rose from the bed and sat down on the chair at the side of the bed. He stayed there and silently vowed to stay there until she was well again.

Later that night Rapunzel sat down with her parents for dinner. The king and queen both looked at Eugene's empty seat and looked at Rapunzel. Rapunzel sighed. She had been trying to convince Eugene all day to leave the stuffy bedroom and let Julia sleep, but he wouldn't. He wouldn't even look at Rapunzel. He just stared at the girl in the bed, determined not to let anything else bad happen to her. "Eugene has decided to stay by Julia's side." She said looking at his empty seat. A sad expression entered her face. Her parents just nodded in approval but looked concerned at the same time.

Rapunzel was ready for bed; she was tired from the kayos of the day. She entered her bedroom expecting to find Eugene there but he wasn't. She sighed and walked down the hall a little ways and tiptoed into the darkening room. Eugene was sitting in the chair. His head rested on his hands, his fingers were half combed into his thick dark hair. He looked like he was sleeping so Rapunzel slowly walked forward, not wanting to startle him. he looked up at her as she took another step. He surprised her and she jumped a little.

"sorry" he said standing up.

"no, its ok" she whispered. She looked into his hazel eyes. "oh Eugene" she exclaimed placing a hand on his cheek. "you look so tired" her voice full of concern.

Eugene was tired but he didn't want to leave Julia. He tried to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

"I'm fine" he said trying to sound awake. Rapunzel frowned.

"ernt you coming to bed?"

Eugene shook his head. "no"

"at least come eat something" she pulled on his arm but he gently pulled back.

"No Rapunzel" he said resting his hands on her shoulders. "I'm not going anywhere"

Eugene looked deep into Rapunzel's emerald eyes and she could see he was serious. She sighed and hugged him.

"just hold me" she whispered and he held her close and tightened his embrace slightly. Julia shifted only a little but it was enough to get Eugene's attention. He let himself out of the hug and watched the little girl anxiously, hoping, praying she would wake up and be fine. But she simply turned over and kept sleeping. He waited but she just slept peacefully. Finally, Eugene sat back down on the seat. Rapunzel walked over to the closet and quietly opened its doors and pulled out a blanket. She gently placed it over her husband's shoulders and kissed him on the cheek.

"Goodnight Eugene"

"Goodnight"

Rapunzel closed the door behind her and walked down the hall and into her room. She crawled in the large bed and shivered under the covers. It was cold that night ad she didn't have Eugene there to warm her. She grasped his pillow and tried to imagine it being him but it just wasn't the same. She wanted Eugene there. She missed him. She sobbed almost silently until she fell asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 4:

Eugene woke up and repositioned himself in the chair which had grown quite uncomfortable. He ran his hands through his hair and rubbed his eyes. He winced at the pain that shot up through his back and neck. The chair was hard and he hadn't gotten much sleep that night. He looked up at Julia who was still sleeping in her warm bed. She looked content even though she had a few bruises on her head and arm. Her broken arm was wrapped tightly in a cloth and sling. The morning sun danced across the walls as it rose.

On the other side of the hall, Rapunzel woke from the sound of birds chirping near the balcony. The princess sat up and rubbed at her face. Her eyes fell upon Eugene's pillow and realized he never came to bed. She jumped out of bed and quickly threw on a simple dress. She opened the large doors of the bedroom and raced across the hall and into Julia's room. She opened the door quietly and walked in. Eugene looked up and when he saw Rapunzel at the doorway, he stood up and walked over to her. Rapunzel gasped at her husband's blood-shot eyes and the dark circles under them. She immediately cupped her hands around his face. "Eugene" she whispered in concern. Her husband just looked into her emerald eyes and smiled weakly. "Hey Blondie" he tried to hide the exhaustion in his voice. "You need to get some rest Eugene" she said firmly as she grasped his broad shoulders. Eugene just shook his head. "Not until she's better" Rapunzel glanced at the little girl asleep in the large bed. "Eugene, she is fine. You need to think about yourself now." She tightened her grip on him. Eugene shook his head and returned to his seat. "I can't" he said finally.

Without another word, Rapunzel rushed out of the room and down the hall. She was scared and she didn't know what to do. Eugene was practically killing himself in there and she couldn't do a thing about it, or at least she felt like that. She pranced down the stairs and headed for the royal kitchen. She burst through the doors, catching the chefs by surprise, and calmly walked over to them. They bowed in respect and she signaled her hand for them to rise. When they did Rapunzel gave her orders. After about half an hour of buzzing around the kitchen, the chief chef handed her a tray of food. She thanked them and hurried back upstairs, down the hall and into Julia's room. To her amazement, Julia was still sound asleep. She placed the tray on the table and looked at Eugene who was watching her.

"Eat" she commanded as she pointed to the food and walked out of the room. She wished she could stay with him and made sure he ate, but she couldn't neglect the demands of her kingdom. She sighed as she entered her room to get ready for her daily duties.

Eugene stared at the food. He could hear his stomach growling but he didn't budge. He hardly even noticed the smell of the freshly poached eggs and cooked bacon. He didn't want to eat. He couldn't eat, not now. Not when a certain little person needed him. Julia shifted and her eyes slowly fluttered open. Eugene turned his head to see her. He jumped up and leaned over the bed and brushed her hair back.

"Julia?" Eugene's voice was full of hope.

Julia turned her head to meet his gaze. A small smile appeared on her face.

"Teddy!" she cried happily as she sat up quickly to hug him. Her happiness was cut short when pain shot through her arm. She cried out and grasped her broken arm but that just caused more pain.

"Easy, just lay down" Eugene said trying to speak over her cries as he gently pushed her back into the pillows. Tears built up in Julia's blue eyes as her chin started to quiver. "don't weave me Teddy" she said clinging to his arm.

"Im not, I'm not leaving you." Eugene wiped away a falling tear from her eye.

Eugene fed the food on the tray to Julia and calmed her down by talking softly to her. Eventually, she fell asleep. Eugene sighed as he planted himself once more on the chair. His back ached, his stomach hurt, and he felt slightly lightheaded from little sleep. But he remained in his seat and watched over the little girl in the bed. The hours passed by but Eugene stayed like this for the whole afternoon. Calming Julia when she woke, and watching her when she slept.

Rapunzel kept herself busy with letters from distant kingdoms and helping the queen with other various tasks. She tried hard not to think about it but she was worried about Eugene. Finally, all the tasks were accomplished and she hurried back to Julia's room with another tray of food. Just before entering, she kicks off her shoes. She hated wearing them. She opened the doors and walked into the room. She placed the tray on the table and saw that the food she had brought earlier was gone. Thinking Eugene had eaten it, she smiled and walked over to him and rubbed his shoulders. Eugene moaned because they were sore.

"Are you alright?" Rapunzel looked down at him with concern.

"Im fine" Eugene tried to reassure her but the truth was he was sore all over from sitting in that chair for nearly two days. His stomach hurt terribly, and his headache had grown worse. He had trouble keeping his eyes open and was rather thirsty.

"Ok" she whispered. Her voice told him that she doubted him. She placed the blanket over him and tiptoed over to the door. "Goodnight" she whispered as she blew him a kiss." Eugene just moaned in response, his eyes already closed, his head resting on his hand. Rapunzel gave a small smile, picked up her shoes, and went to bed.

The night dragged on as Eugene used all his strength to stay awake. He would stand up and pace, have whispered conversations with himself, and would pace again. Anything to keep from falling asleep. He wanted to be there when Julia woke up, or if she had a nightmare, he wanted to be there when she needed him. only once that night did Julia wake up. But she only said high to 'teddy' and went back to sleep. Eugene slapped himself across the face when he felt himself falling asleep. He cursed himself for being so weak. The pain in his stomach only grew more intense from not eating for two days.

Finally, the sun rose and Eugene had never felt so tired in his life. But he would not, could not rest until he knew for sure that Julia was ok or at least going to be ok. To his surprise, Rapunzel entered the room with the royal doctor. Rapunzel gasped in shock when she saw her husband, but tried to hide it when the doctor made his way over to the sleeping girl. Eugene looked just about ready to collapse. Rapunzel rushed over to him and gently grabbed his arm, just in case he did. But his tired eyes were fixed on Julia as the doctor examined her.

"C'mon Eugene" Rapunzel said softly as she gently led him out of the room. Too tired to protest, he followed, staggering as he went. They waited in the hallway with the king and queen. The queen made her way over to Eugene and looked him over with concerned eyes. "Open your mouth Eugene" she said brushing back some of his hair. He obeyed and opened his mouth. "Hmm" the queen looked into his mouth as Rapunzel watched on with curiosity. As Eugene closed his mouth, the queen examined his eyes. They were bloodshot, that was clear, and a little bit glassy. By the way he had trouble keeping his eyes open, the queen suspected he hadn't slept much, if not at all. "Eugene" he lifted his eyes to meet his mother-in-law's gaze. "When was the last time you had something to eat?" she asked starring right at him. Eugene looked down. "The night before Julia fell" the queen looked at Rapunzel and the king in shock then looked back at Eugene. "That was nearly three days ago!" she cupped a hand on his cheek. "yes ma'am" Eugene could barely keep his eyes open now.

Just then the doctor came out. "I am happy to tell you that Julia is doing much better that I thought she would. In a few days she can even start walking around, just as long as she keeps her arm in that sling." Everyone let out a sigh of relief. Rapunzel and her parents walked up to the doctor to thank him and asked him various questions. None of them noticed Eugene. His headache had gotten worse, his stomach felt like it had been punched and he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. He knew now for sure Julia was going to be fine. Julia was going to be fine. With that thought, his mind went blank; he had used up his last ounce of strength. His legs could not hold him any longer when he collapsed.

….

"Eugene!" a voice called his name from somewhere. It sounded faint and far away at first but then grew louder. "Eugene!" it called out again but Eugene only saw total darkness. "Eugene, please wake up!" He knew that voice, it was Rapunzel. He tried to open his eyes but the lids were too heavy. "Eugene, please!" Rapunzel sounded like she was crying. He had to wake up. He tried to open his eyes again and this time they did. His vision was blurry but he could see Rapunzel's figure hovering above him. Slowly, he regained his vision. His head was in her lap and she was cradling it. "Eugene?" she looked at him with worry-filled eyes. The queen knelt down beside her and brushed some of Eugene's thick dark hair away from his face. Eugene winced at the pain in his neck as the doctor too knelt beside Rapunzel. He took Eugene's hand and checked his pulse. "Let's get him in the bedroom." He said as he stood up. From sheer exhaustion, Eugene blacked out again.


	5. Chapter 5

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 5:

Rapunzel waited outside of the bedroom. She paced in the hall and murmured to herself quietly. The king and queen watched their daughter trying to think of ways to calm her down. The queen finally spoke up.

"Rapunzel, dear" Rapunzel stopped to look at her, still rubbing her arms nervously.

"Stop pacing and come sit down." The queen patted the seat next to her.

Rapunzel realized she was doing exactly what her husband had been doing just three days ago, frantically pacing, blaming herself, and feeling helpless. She slightly smiled at the fact that she and Eugene were so much alike. She slowly made her way over to the empty seat and sat down but jumped right back up when the doctor came through the door. She rushed over to him and rubbed her hands together in an anxious matter.

"He's alright" the doctor said placing his hands on her small shoulders. "He's just over tired. He is sick because he hasn't eaten in a few days, he's a little dehydrated, but other than that, he just needs rest." Rapunzel winced at the thought of Eugene being so weak. She hated seeing him like that, and still had nightmares of that awful morning when gothel's knife had pierced his skin. Nightmares of him dying in her arms and Gothel dragging her away, leaving his body in the tower. Nightmares that only Eugene could save her from. He was the only one who could comfort her. The doctor made his way over to the king and queen.

"I fear he will grow sicker if he has a big meal, so for now, feed him soup that's easy on his stomach. In about two days, make the soup heavier and after that he can have normal meals."

The king and queen nodded and asked him a few more questions while Rapunzel found her way to the bedroom doors. She tiptoed in and peeked around the corner. Eugene was sleeping, his face looked at peace. She walked out from her hiding spot and quietly walked over to the side of his bed. His head was slightly leaning, facing her. His dark thick locks were spread out on the soft pillow. It reminded her of the first time she saw him in the tower. She smiled at the memory. His body sprawled out, face down on the floor. She had just bashed her frying pan against his skull. Gathering up her courage, she had nudged his head with the handle of her weapon, causing it to fall to the side and show most of his face. She then flicked a lock of dark brown hair away, which was covering his eye. She felt her shoulders relax as she stared at him in awe. She had never seen anything like him before. He was a 'a what?' Rapunzel thought and came to the answer. 'a man'

Rapunzel batted her long eye lashes, coming back from her flashback. Just then the queen entered the room and sighed in relief. "He's going to be alright Rapunzel" the queen whispered as she slowly walked over next to her daughter. Rapunzel nodded with a smile on her face, but it then faded and she looked confused. "why did he…" Rapunzel started but wasn't sure how to finish her sentence. "what happened to him? why did he…..act like that?"

The queen just smiled and held her daughters hand. "he was just worried"

The queen could see Rapunzel was still confused and she sighed, thinking of the best way to explain it.

"you see dear" she started. "the males of the family are built and meant to protect all the other family members. They are the patriarchs." Rapunzel nodded. "When you have a family, well, this protective instinct comes over the male, and it's unstoppable." Rapunzel gasped and looked down at Eugene like he had some type of deadly disease. The queen softly laughed seeing her daughter's expression. "that's good Rapunzel" the queen tightened her grip on the girls hand to reassure her. Rapunzel looked up at her mother and gave a slight sigh of relief. The queen finished making her point. "remember when Eugene gave up his life to save yours?" Rapunzel nodded. "well, that's how powerful that force can be" the queen smiled down at the sleeping figure in the bed.

…...

Eugene wearily opened his sleepy eyes. His vision was a little blurry but cleared up after a few seconds of blinking. It was dark, the sun had set and the halls were silent. Eugene looked down to see Rapunzel cuddled up against him. He smiled down at her sleeping form. He sighed and closed his eyes in thought. He had done well taking care of Julia and he couldn't help but smile at himself. He knew for sure she would be alright, and he knew that Rapunzel was going to be alright. Content, he let himself fall back into blackness and fall asleep.

The next morning Rapunzel opened her eyes to see Eugene's sleeping face. She grinned when she noticed he wasn't pale anymore and he looked rested. She gently stroked his cheek with her finger and traced his jaw bone. Eugene smiled in his sleep. Rapunzel giggled when she remembered that he was particularly ticklish there. Then Eugene's eyes fluttered open to the sound of Rapunzel giggling. He smiled sleepily and ran his hand through his wife's short brown hair.

"Good morning" he said with a yawn. Rapunzel tickled his neck and he flinched. She laughed at his squirming to escape her.

"Hey!" he chuckled. "Cut that out!" he rolled over on his back and sighed when she finally stopped.

"More like afternoon" she corrected as she sat up and beamed down at him. Eugene rolled his eyes and Rapunzel laughed, leaned down and planted a gentle kiss on his lips. Eugene breathed in through his nose and pulled her down to deepen the kiss. Just then someone knocked at the door. Rapunzel quickly pulled away. Eugene groaned. "Why do they always pick the worst moment?" he asked frustrated. Rapunzel just shrugged as she pulled on her robe. She walked over to the door and opened it to see a servant with a tray of food. She motioned for him to bring it in and he placed it on the bed ignoring the fact that the crown prince was still in bed. After he left, Rapunzel settled herself next to Eugene.

"You ordered breakfast?" he asked with a smirk on his face.

Rapunzel nodded happily. "and this time I'm going to make sure you eat it!" she said as she poked at Eugene's chest. Eugene just laughed. "no problem Blondie" and with that, Eugene ate his first meal in four days.


	6. Chapter 6

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 6

As the days passed, Julia's arm slowly got better as did Eugene. Soon Eugene was back to full meals instead of Rapunzel's hazelnut soup. Julia started to get her personality back as she got better at hobbling around, following Eugene. He was cautious to not walk far or for too long, because he knew Julia wouldn't stop following him, even if her arm started hurting her again. Days turned into several weeks as Rapunzel started to show. By now her parents knew of course, and Rapunzel and the queen now spent most of their time planning for a baby shower. The king spent long hours planted in a chair at his desk, reading letters from distant kingdoms and signing important documents. Eugene, on the other hand, spent his days watching over Julia. He enjoyed her company and he had nothing better to do. Julia often dragged Eugene into a game of tag or most of the time, they played hide n seek which was Julia's favorite.

It was a beautiful morning as Eugene followed Julia as she happily skipped into the palace gardens. Eugene sat down on an outdoor bench and watched her as she marveled at the variety of colorful flowers. Suddenly Julia ran over to him and tugged at his arm.

"Pway hide n seek wiff me teddy!" she said as she batted her eyelashes. Eugene rolled his eyes in a teasing way. "Ok" he said finally as she squealed in delight and dragged him to his feet. She pulled him over to a tree and pointed to his hazel eyes.

"Cover your eyes and count" she said as she waited for him to do what she had instructed. Smiling, Eugene covered his eyes with his arm and leaned against the tree.

"no peeking!" Julia yelled as she ran off to hide. Eugene smiled and started to count out loud so that she could hear him. "One…two…three…four…five…" he could hear little feet dash around looking for someplace to hide. "Six…seven…eight…nine…TEN! Ready or not, here I come!" he shouted as he lifted his head. He stomped around the garden in his heavy boots as if he wanted to warn Julia he was coming. His keen ears detected the slightest noise of rustling leaves. He grinned to himself and stood in front of the bush the noise had come from. "I wonder where Julia is?" he stated out loud, scratching at his goatee as if he was confused. He heard the soft sound of giggles come from behind the bush. Smiling he turned and quickly spun around the bush. Julia screamed joyfully as he chuckled and picked her up. She laughed as he tickled her gently.

Later, Julia said she was hungry so Eugene brought her in for lunch. After a peanut butter and jelly sandwich made by Eugene, Julia was quite content and went back to playing. With a sigh, Eugene landed in his armchair while Julia played on the floor. Eugene tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Chasing a hyper 3 year old around all day _was_ after all exhausting. A few moments passed before Eugene heard the last thing he wanted to hear. The high pitched scream rippled through him as his heart stopped beating. He quickly grabbed Julia, searching her for any sign of pain as she struggled in his arms and kept screaming. "Julia! Julia, what's wrong?" He yelled over her screams as she seemed to be hitting her dress. Finally, she stopped and hugged Eugene's neck tightly causing him to choke. "Julia! Wha..." but he was quickly cut off.

"There was a..a.." she stammered.

"a what?" Eugene was almost yelling.

"SPIDER!" the little girl bursted out and hugged him even tighter.

Eugene froze. Had she really just scared the life out of him all for a tiny spider?

"a…spider?" Eugene asked in disbelief. All of that for a stupid spider? Julia flinched at the word and nodded, burying her head into the crick of Eugene's neck. Eugene still couldn't believe it.


	7. Chapter 7

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 7

Eugene quietly closed the large doors behind him as he left the nursery. He had just laid Julia down for bed and read her a volume of the 'Tales of Flynnigan Rider'. He sighed and rubbed his tired face as he walked down the hall and into his and Rapunzel's bedroom. Rapunzel was softly humming as she brushed through her short brown hair. Eugene came up behind her and kissed her cheek.

"Well hello" Rapunzel said as she smiled at his reflection in the mirror.

"Hey Blondie" Eugene yawned. Rapunzel stood up and turned to face him.

"Tired?" she asked as she placed a hand on his cheek.

Eugene nodded. "Very" he said and rested his head on her hand. He moaned when she moved her hand to his chest and he had to support his own head again. She unbuttoned his vest, helped him out of it and put it in their closet. Eugene made his way over to the large bed and collapsed onto it, starting to drift to sleep. Rapunzel giggled as she picked up his foot and tugged the heavy leather boot off of it. Eugene moaned sleepily as she pulled off the other one. Rapunzel then slipped under the covers and nuzzled up next to him.

"Eugene?"

"Hmm?"

"We…we can keep her" Rapunzel whispered.

Eugene opened his tired eyes and looked at Rapunzel. "What?"

Rapunzel smiled. "I said we can adopt Julia"

Eugene grinned a large grin and kissed Rapunzels head. They talked for a while about it but eventually, Eugene fell asleep. Rapunzel grinned. "You're a wonderful father, Eugene Fitzherbert. She whispered and fell asleep in his strong arms.

_Eugene found himself in a large black space somewhere. Then he saw Rapunzel clutching and cradling something. She was crying and screaming out in agony. It pained Eugene to hear her scream like that. "Rapunzel? " He called out and moved closer to her. "Rapunzel, what wro..." then he realized she was holding Susan. Eugene immediately knelt down beside her and tried to hold his lifeless daughter, but Rapunzel pushed him away. "stay away from her!" she screamed. This surprised Eugene and confused him. "Rapunzel, wha..." he started to say but she cut him off. "I said stay away from her!" she screamed through her tears. "You let her get sick! You didn't save her, and now she is dead because of YOU!" Rapunzel's words cut through his heart like a sword. Eugene was speechless. "YOU let her down and you let me down and you let Julia down!" Rapunzel pointed behind Eugene. Eugene turned to see Julia lying at the bottom of a stair case. "Julia! No…"Eugene exclaimed. "It's all your fault!" Rapunzel pointed to him. "No" Eugene couldn't believe what was happening. "I hate you!"Rapunzel screamed. This was all too much for Eugene. Suddenly palace guards came out of nowhere and pulled his arms back and forced him down. "NO! RAPUNZEL PLEASE!" He shouted as they shackled his wrists tightly behind his back and started to drag him away into the darkness. He yelled and screamed to Rapunzel but no one heard him. He just kept being dragged into the darkness when everything went black._

Eugene woke with a start. "Rapunzel!" he yelled as he clutched the bed sheets and heaved oxygen into his lungs. A light appeared from the bathroom as Rapunzel entered the room and walked over to the bed. "Eugene? What is it?" she asked worriedly as she placed her candle on the bedside table. Eugene didn't speak; he just clutched the sheets tighter and breathed heavily, trying to calm himself down. Rapunzel placed her hand on his face and gasped. "Eugene, you're so warm!" Eugene was sweating all over. He sat up and ran a hand through his damp hair. "Are you alright?" Rapunzel asked as she cupped his face in her hands. Eugene kept breathing hard and looked around the room. "I'll be right back" Rapunzel said as she got up and rushed to the bathroom. Eugene observed his surroundings. He was in his room, it was night and the room was dark. Rapunzel came back into the room holding a damp cloth. "Now, just lay down Eugene" she said as she gently pushed him back into the pillows. She brought the cloth up to his face and wiped him down with it. "Rapunzel" he started, looking into her worry-filled green eyes. "Shh" she hushed as she moved the cloth to his neck and upper chest that his unbuttoned collar revealed. Eugene swallowed the lump in his throat. The cold, wet cloth felt so good against his overheated skin. "Do you hate me for letting Susan die?" The question caught Rapunzel completely off guard. "What? No of course not!" He just stared at her. "Why would you think that Eugene?" she asked as she wiped down his face again. "I...I dreamed that you did" he said as he ran his hand through her short brown hair. "Oh Eugene!" She couldn't believe he dreamed that she actually hated him. "I'm so sorry! I could never _ever_ hate you!" Eugene sighed, closed his eyes and relaxed. She didn't hate him, Julia was fine and the guards weren't dragging him away. It was just a dream.

The next morning after breakfast, Eugene and Rapunzel got the adoption papers ready to be signed. The couple walked into the nursery and sat down with Julia.

"Julia" Rapunzel started, holding the little girl in her arms. Even though Julia was extremely close to Eugene, she had allowed herself to warm up to Rapunzel too. Rapunzel and Julia would often spend time together now to let Eugene have a break and they became very close. "We want to ask you something" the little girl looked to Eugene with curious blue eyes. "What?" she asked looking back at Rapunzel. Rapunzel sighed and looked to Eugene for him to finish what she had started. Julia stared at him. "We would like to become your parents…would you like that?" Eugene had barely finished his sentence when Julia screamed, jumped up and hugged him tightly. "YAY! Was all she said as she turned and hugged Rapunzel. The couple laughed at her excitement and led her down the hallway. They signed the papers and the king stamped it with the kingdom symbol. Julia had no records of her full name so Eugene and Rapunzel got to choose a middle name for her. So that day Julia Susan Fitzherbert finally had a family and a permanent home. Her new grandparents hugged her and everyone warmly welcomed her into the royal family. And that evening, Eugene and Rapunzel released a lantern into the sky to welcome their new princess.


	8. Chapter 8

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 8

The morning sun rose in the distance and the warm rays danced across the walls of the bedroom. Rapunzel squinted in her sleep as the blinding sun shone on her face. Suddenly it went away, something was blocking it. She opened her sleepy eyes.

"Eugene?" she looked at the handsome man lying next to her. he supporting his upper body on one arm. Eugene just smiled and slowly ran his hand through her hair.

"Hey Blondie" he whispered. He leaned down and planted a kiss on her lips. Suddenly something small ran through the room and jumped onto the bed, surprising the royal couple and they pulled away.

"Eww" the little girl stated wrinkling up her nose. "You were kissing" she made a face and stuck out her tongue. The royal couple just laughed as Julia ran out of the room.

The royal family sat down for breakfast. The king, the queen, Eugene, Rapunzel, and Julia. Rapunzel looked at her plate of eggs and bacon for a moment then raised a hand to call a servant over. Eugene watched her with curiosity while he had the feeling the queen knew exactly what her daughter was doing. Rapunzel looked up at the servant, her eyelashes batting.

"Do you possibly have any…" she hesitated for a moment. The servant waited patiently as Eugene stared at his wife, waiting for her to continue. "…any watermelon?" she smiled ever so innocently. The servant looked confused for a moment as Eugene looked surprised. "uh, ill check your highness." The servant said as he left the room. Rapunzel grinned and looked over to see Eugene.

"Watermelon…you asked for watermelon?" he asked, chuckling slightly.

"What?" she asked innocently looking at her mother.

"It's normal to have cravings when women are pregnant Eugene" the queen said simply and lifted her glass to her mouth. Eugene smiled and remembered when Rapunzel was pregnant with Susan. She would ask for the strangest things in the middle of the night. He smiled at the memory and held Rapunzel's hand. "Sorry, I forgot" he said looking in to her sparkling green eyes. She smiled back when she looked past Eugene and giggled. "uh, Eugene…someone just look your toast." Eugene swerved his head around to see Julia noisily chomping on his toast. "Hey!" he said as the rest of the family laughed. The king raised his coffee cup to his mouth and spoke before taking a sip. "So when will Julia's celebration be?" Rapunzel exchanged looks with the queen. "Monday" the queen stated as Rapunzel nodded. The king nodded in agreement as Eugene winked at the smiling little girl sitting next to him.

….

Everyone in Corona once again was bustling about. Shopkeepers hung kingdom flags across the streets and women and young girls bought and made dresses for the celebration of the new princess. Among all the busyness of the streets, two figures dressed in black sat at the local bar, watching the kingdom excitement through the window.

"So what your saying is" one of the men said. "is that tonight is the celebration for the orphan girl that the prince and princess have adopted?" The other man dressed in a black cape nodded slowly. "and if we kidnap that orphan, then they will be willing to do and pay anything to get her back…right?" once again, the man nodded. The first man smirked. "Henry" the man in the cape was whispering now and pulled out a large sac of coins. "They say the prince is very close to the girl…and he will do anything to keep her safe…if he interferes." The man pointed his chin to the dagger hiding under Henry's cape. Henry greedily grasped the sac of coins and smiled wickedly. "It will be done" he then got up from the table and left the pub, disappearing into the crowd.

….

Eugene straitened his vest and the kingdom's symbol on his chest. He heard the door creak open behind him and he turned to see Julia and Rapunzel enter the room. Julia happily skipped over to him. She had a beautiful blue dress on and Eugene noticed right away how it matched her eyes. Her hair had been curled for the special occasion and atop of her head, sat a small simple crown. Eugene knelt down beside his princess. "You look beautiful" he said with a smile on his face. She returned the smile. "You do to!" she said happily as she traced her fingers over the shining metal on his chest. Eugene chuckled and stood up to see his wife. His jaw fell agape when he saw her. She had on a beautiful purple gown on and the sparkling crown was upon her head. She was gorgeous, even though her belly stuck out because she was pregnant. Rapunzel blushed. "Uh…how do I look?" she said looking down at herself. Eugene walked over to her and held her hands. "Amazing" he whispered and kissed her cheek. The queen entered the room, dressed up as well. "its time! Are you ready?" she asked excitedly. "Yeah!" Julia squealed as she grabbed Eugene's hand and dragged him out into the hallway. Rapunzel giggled and followed her family.

Outside of the palace doors, they were greeted by hook hand, big nose, and some of the other thugs who had been invited. Julia had met them before and they often played together. She cried out happily and ran to her giant-like friends. After a moment of exchanging greetings and giggles, the royal family was off to the celebration which was going to be held at the entrance of the town, just like when Rapunzel had returned.

After a little while of greeting people, the royal family got up on a platform and the king made a speech to present the new princess to the kingdom. Everyone cheered and soon, people were dancing to hook hand's piano music while others were feasting on the food set out for the celebration. Julia happily danced with Eugene while Rapunzel giggled and danced with bignose. During the dance, Eugene watched as Julia skipped through the crowd and suddenly she was out of sight. Eugene watched and waited for her to come skipping back, but after a few moments he realized she was gone. 'oh no..,' Eugene thought as he walked through the dancing people and looked down low hoping to see a small girl in a blue dress, but she wasn't there. He thought he caught a glimpse of her but it quickly vanished once again into the crowd. Wasting no time, he marched through the crowd and finally made through to the other side. What he saw next made him stop in his tracks. Behind a bush, far from the dancing, was Julia's small little crown, sparkling in the setting sun's rays. Without thinking to grab a few guards, Eugene dashed towards it and saw large footsteps leading down a path, farther into the brush. He picked up the crown and hurriedly followed the path.

Meanwhile, Rapunzel had become worried because Julia or Eugene was not to be seen anywhere. She pulled hookhand off the piano and while some other guy jumped on it.

"Hookhand!" Rapunzel said in a panicky tone. "Eugene and Julia are nowhere to be seen! Have you seen them?" But the thug just shook his head. Rapunzel was getting really worried now. "could you.." she started to say but the giant of a man raised his hand to stop her. "we will go look for them" he said in a deep voice that made Rapunzel feel somewhat safe. She sighed in relief. "Oh thank you!" and the group of thugs went in all different directions through the dancing crowd, trying not to knock over people as they went.

Eventually, they found traces of Eugene's heavy boots and followed the trail. The thugs stopped when they heard a cry of pain, it was a man, they could tell that much and he wasn't too far away. Hookhand led the group until they heard muffled grunts and pushed their way through some hedges. The thugs were surprised at what they saw. "Rider?" they all asked as they made their way over to the figure on the ground. Eugene groaned in pain as he clutched at his side. The thug's eyes widened when they saw what was causing the pain. A long arrow was embedded in Eugene's side. Hookhand knelt down next to Eugene and shifted him to get a better view of the injury. Eugene cried out in pain when he did this and gritted his teeth. "easy" said bignose as he ripped off some cloth from his sleeve and held it ready. One of the thug's ran back to get help while Hookhand moved Eugene's hand from his wound to get a better look. "It's deep" he said as he looked up at the thugs, then he turned to look into Eugene's pain-filled face. "It's going to have to come out" he said as he placed his large hand around the arrow. Eugene winced in agony. Any slight shifts of the arrow sent strong waves of pain through his entire body. Big nose sat ready to place the cloth on it to prevent bleeding, but Eugene had lost a lot of blood already. Placing his other hand over Eugene's shoulder, Hookhand tugged the arrow out with one swift move. "AAAAHHH!" Eugene yelled out in pain as bignose quickly placed the cloth over the bleeding gash. Suddenly Rapunzel, the king and queen, and some guards bursted though the shrubs. Rapunzel had heard Eugene's cry of pain and when she did, her heart stopped. "Eugene!" she cried as she knelt down beside Hookhand and immediately supported her husband's head. "What happened?" the king asked worriedly as he motioned his hand for some guards to fetch a doctor. Before hookhand could answer, Eugene did between grunts and winces. "Julia…they took…AHH!…Julia..." everyone's eyes widened in fear as the king immediately summoned the guards to search the entire kingdom. Eugene started to fade into blackness.

"no…NO! EUGENE!" rapunzel cried and started to choke up. Hookhand lifted up Eugene as gently as he could and started to head back to the castle. Rapunzel and her parents eagerly followed close behind.


	9. Chapter 9

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 9

Rapunzel's eyes darted back and forth, following the doctors hands as they quickly worked to bind the heavily bleeding gash near Eugene's ribs. The wound was deep and the doctor finished with an unsure look on his face that made Rapunzel feel uneasy. Rapunzel looked at him, desperately waiting for orders to get hot water, bandages, tools, anything to help. But he just sighed and washed the dried blood off his hands.

"the wound is deep" he started. "I will stay in the room with him for tonight."

Rapunzel looked at the thugs and her parents all waiting and watching the doctor. "if you don't mind" the doctor said slowly. "I would like to speak with the princess…alone" he finished and almost instantly, Rapunzel herded the crowd out of the bedroom. She shut the door behind them and turned to look at the doctor. Her hands where trembling. She noticed this and quickly rubbed them nervously.

"Your highness" the doctor started almost in a whisper. "I cannot pretend the prince's condition is not critical." He stopped for a moment. He had to choose his words carefully. "What I'm trying to say is…" Rapunzel nodded, waiting for him to continue. "…he might not make it through the night." Rapunzel froze in disbelief and looked at the sleeping figure in the bed. His shirt was off, reveling the large bandage wrapped around his abdomen. Rapunzel tried to avoid looking at the deep red stain emerging and growing on his side, but it could not be overlooked. She looked back at the royal doctor, her mouth agape. "I will do my best your highness." He said, trying to reassure her. Tears started to form in Rapunzel's green eyes and she nodded. The doctor left the room to inform the waiting group outside. Rapunzel took a deep breath and slowly made her way over to the limp body in the bed.

Rapunzel slowly lowered herself on the bed and gently held Eugene's upper body in her lap and arms. She listened to his shallow breathing, and watched him as he flinched and winced slightly in his sleep from the pain the arrow was given him. Feeling completely helpless, she began to sing.

"_Flower gleam and glow,_

_Let your power shine,_

_Make the clock reverse,_

_Bring back what once was mine,_

…_.what once was mine"_

She whispered as she gave in to her sadness, and her tears began to fall. Not magical, healing tears, but real ones.

**Hey guys sorry, I've been REALLY busy with school and all and I'm having a bit of writers block, but please comment! Your reviews always inspire me and lift my spirits! Thanks!**


	10. Chapter 10

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 10

_What was happening? Where was he? Was his family safe? Where's Julia? Is Rapunzel safe? Is the baby? All these questions flooded Eugene's mind. He Found himself in some sort of black hole. He looked around but saw nothing but blackness. The only light source was shining on him. where was he? Was he dead? No, death was a warm, flying feeling. This was not death, or at least it wasn't like this the last time. Suddenly was back in the tower. Rapunzel was gagged and chained before him. he took a step toward her but stopped when he felt a sharp pain in his side. The cold dagger slid out of him just as easily as it had slid in, and he sank to the floor. But instead of hitting the floor, he just kept falling, down, down, down, deep into the blackness. "Rapunzel…Rapunzel!" he shouted as he fell farther. But instead of hearing her sweet voice, he just heard the cruel, mocking laughs of Gothel. "No..Rapunzel!" he shouted again but he only kept falling._

"No, no…Rapunzel!"

"Eugene!"

"No..Rapunzel!"

"Eugene! I'm here!"

"Rapunzel!"

"Eugene! Wake up!"

Eugene eyes flung open. He panted heavily and blinked to clear his blurry vision.

"Ra…Rapunzel?" he said squinting, trying to see her face.

Rapunzel cupped her hands around his face and brushed some brown locks of hair from it.

"Eugene..I'm here, shh…everything's alright." Rapunzel gazed into his tired hazel eyes. They gazed at each other for a moment before Eugene suddenly squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. Rapunzel gasped realizing he was in pain. "Dr. Arnold!" she called franticly as she looked around for the Royal doctor. The sleeping Doctor woke and quickly rose from his chair. He made his way over to Eugene and checked his pulse. Rapunzel glanced back and forth between her love, and the Doctor. Dr. Arnold gently untied the cloth wrapped around Eugene's abdomen. Eugene gasped sharply as the doctor lifted the bandage and inspected the deep wound.

….

The moon shone on her blond curls, the wind slapped her face as she ran, ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. She could hear them behind her, those cruel men who had tricked her, and shoved her into a sac. Julia ran and ran, her heart pounding against her chest. She had somehow managed to squirm out of their ruff hands. She ran and ran, she didn't dare look back. Finally, she couldn't hear them behind her anymore. She ducked behind a few bushes and sat on the ground. She tried to be as quiet as possible while heaving oxygen in and out of her lungs. After a few moments of silence, she stopped when she heard voices and heavy boots coming closer and closer. But instead of her kidnappers, they were…palace guards!

"Princess Julia!" they called out and searched around trees and shrubs. Julia sighed in relief and stepped out of the bush.

"here…"she started to say but her voice died as a hand was cupped around her mouth and she was pulled back into the bushes. She screamed through the ruff hand but it was barely audible. And just like that, she disappeared through the bushes.

The guards, who were a good ten yards away, never heard the little girl's cries for help. They only kept calling out for her and headed in the opposite direction.


	11. Chapter 11

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 11

Julia struggled as a pair of ruff hands harried her farther and farther away from everything she knew. One gruff hand covered her mouth in an attempt to keep her from calling for help. She saw this as an opportunity and bit down on it. Her kidnapper gave a not-so-manly squeal and repositioned his hand so that it wasn't so close to her mouth. Julia couldn't see who was carrying her sense it was near midnight. She only saw the moon, when everything went black and she was placed in a large sac. Quite a while later, she was pulled out of the stuffy sac and she realized she was in room. She looked up to see two men standing over her. She was about to scream when a hand was placed over her mouth.

"Don't you dare scream or call for help." One man said pulling out a dagger and flashing in front of the young girls face. Julia instantly froze.

"That's right." Said one man and he picked her up and placed her down on the floor in the corner of the room. There wasn't much there. There was a table and two chairs, a single mat on the floor and a small stove. One man sat down at the table and started to right something down on a piece of paper while the second man sat in front of Julia and watched her like a hawk. Julia cautiously looked around. There wasn't even a window in the walls. No chances of escape.

….

"But Rapunzel, I have to go" Eugene said through the pain. "No Eugene, and that's final!" Rapunzel sternly said pushing him back into the pillows. Eugene gasped painfully and gripped his side. "Ahh!" he moaned and Rapunzels face softened and she laid a gentle hand over his. "Sorry" she said and brushed some hair from his face. Rapunzel walked over to the door and out of the room. She closed the door behind her and marched into her room. She walked over to her closet and put on a black cloak. She gasped and held her now very large belly. "Easy" she said to the baby inside her. "There's something we have to do" she turned to Pascal and stretched out her arm and let him crawl to her shoulder. She silently snuck down the hall, down the stairs, and eventually into the royal stables. She walked over to a grand stall and startled the horse inside, but after the white stallion recognized the princess, he neighed and nuzzled her with his soft nose. "I need your help Max" she said as she patted his head.

And just like that, Rapunzel, Max and Pascal busted out of the palace courtyard and into the town streets. They traveled farther and farther when finally, Max caught Julia's scent. He followed his nose and the next thing they knew, the small group was searching through the woods. Rapunzel often gasped and held her belly whenever Max suddenly jolted or jumped over small obstacles. He noticed this and avoided them for her sake and the baby's. They searched and traveled long into the night when Max was certain that they were close. They stopped when a tiny shack came into view. It suddenly hit Rapunzel that she didn't bring any type of weapon with her, not even her trusty frying pan. Dang.

Rapunzel slid off Max and looked at her surroundings. Even though it was dark, she could make out a large stick lying on the ground a few feet away. She picked it up and gathering her courage, slowly crept up to the shack like cottage. Max followed closely behind and Pascal was on Rapunzel's shoulder. Rapunzel soon discovered that the shack didn't have any windows to peer through, so instead, she found a small crack and peeked through it. She could see a man, sitting at a table and looking proudly down at a piece a paper which had something written on it. Suddenly a second man came into view and snapped the paper out of the younger man's hands. He observed it for a moment then smiled wickedly. "Perfect" he stated handing the paper back to his partner. Just then a whimper came from a far corner of the small building. An area that Rapunzel couldn't see, but she knew it was Julia. She nodded to Max to let him know they had found her. Suddenly the baby kicked and dropping the stick, Rapunzel grasped her belly. She gasped loudly and then realizing what she had done, she covered her mouth quickly. But the damage had been done and her fear level rose when the shack door suddenly opened.

….

The morning light shone into the prince's room and shone onto his exhausted face. He hadn't slept much that night between the miserable pain he was going through and the fact that Julia had been kidnapped and all he could do was sit, sit and wait. Just then a servant came into the rom with a letter. He placed it on Eugene's bedside table and quietly walked out, thinking Eugene was still asleep. Eugene opened his eyes after he heard the door click closed. He looked around and saw the letter on his bedside table. He reached over and picked it up.

_To Prince Eugene Fitzherbert_

Was what was written on the front. The writing was messy and barely readable. He opened it, pulled out the piece of paper concealed inside it and unfolded it.

_Dear Mr. Fitzherbert,_

_Are you wondering where your adopted daughter is? Well, I can give you that information if you bring a great reward with you. Bring it to the docks at midnight tomorrow. Bring it then and your precious Julia will not be harmed. Make sure you bring none else with you. Julia's life will depend on it._

_P.S. your wife decided to stop by. The pay better be good for her sake…and your baby's._


	12. Chapter 12

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 12

Eugene filled with rage as he slammed the letter down on the bed. What was he going to do? He was in no condition to meet with some guys at midnight the next day, but he had to save his family. How would he sneak past the queen and the guards? Nothing got past the queen…_ever_, and how could he explain taking all the coins, jewels and cash he had with him? He didn't even have that much. It wasn't like there were just piles of gold lying around. He had to think of something though! It only worried him more to know that Rapunzel was due any day now! Oh what was the man to do?

Suddenly the queen burst into the room. "Eugene!" the sound of panic clear in her voice. "where is Rapunzel?"

Eugene knew where she was, well not exactly, but she knew she wasn't in the castle. Eugene sat dumbstruck for a moment. What was he to do? Tell the queen and risk the life of Julia, Rapunzel and his unborn child? Or keep it a secret and sneak out? But he didn't have any money! _Think Eugene think!_ He thought and surprising himself, he held up the letter._ No no no no! You weren't supposed to do that! _He mentally kicked himself as the queen grasped the letter. He could only watch as her eyes got bigger and bigger, filling up with more fear every second as she hastily read the letter. She suddenly ran out of the room calling guards and the king. Eugene groaned and rubbed his head. All hell had broken loose.

….

Rapunzel held Julia close to her as she eyed the men who were circling around them like vultures. Rapunzel and Julia were currently on the cold floor.

"so" the older man began. "Who's the father?" He said motioning to Rapunzel's large belly.

"Eugene" Rapunzel said quietly after a moment.

"Ah, Rider huh?" He said rubbing his chin. He stared at her for a moment then chuckled wickedly and turned to the younger man. "What better revenge than to hold captive the child of Flynn Rider, eh Henry?" Henry smiled. "and have Rider watch his family…" he trailed off. Both men smiled and chuckled wickedly at each other which made Julia shudder. The older man came up to them and without warning grasped Julia out of Rapunzel's hands and carried her over to a closet. Julia screamed as Rapunzel tried to stand up and defend her daughter, but was knocked to the floor when a ruff hand was suddenly slapped across her face. She then felt her hands being yanked behind her back and tied with a scratchy rope. She gasped as the baby kicked again and Henry sat her up with ruff hands.

….

Eugene gasped painfully as he tried to stand up from his bed. The king helped support him as the queen helped him into a fresh shirt. "Eugene" the queen said looking at him fight the unspeakable pain he was going through. "You can't go"

Eugene winced and nearly fell but the king caught him. "n-no" he stammered through clinched teeth. "I have to go" gathering all his strength, Eugene made it down to the entrance of the castle, of course with help from the king and the doctor. Maximus suddenly bursted through the castle gates and franticly pawed at the ground and waved his head around. Pascal nervously chattered, and eventually the group was following the blood hound-of-a-horse.


	13. Chapter 13

Eugene's Treasure:

Chapter 13

Max snorted proudly when he knew they were getting close. He stopped and turned to wait for the mounted guards and along with the king, queen and Eugene. Max trotted up to Eugene and motioned to his own back. Eugene nodded, understanding the stallion, and with help from the king, mounted Max. Eugene groaned as he settled himself in the saddle then leaned down near the horse's ear. "Go easy on me Max" the horse nodded knowing he was in no condition for a rough ride through the forest. Once again Max led the way and when he got closer, he bolted with excitement causing Eugene to gasp, half from surprise and half from the pain. Max was unaware that they were losing their followers. Eugene noticed however and tried to stop the horse but he couldn't. Finally, with one more sharp turn around a tree, the tiny shack came into view. The big white stallion stopped and nearly reared when the shack door suddenly swung open. Eugene tried to calm the horse when he heard a voice.

"well, well, well" the male voice sent shivers down Eugene's spine. "Hello Rider."

Eugene strained his eyes to see through the moonlight and into the black shack door. Then a man appeared through the door walked a few feet towards them then stopped. Eugene tried to cover up the fact that he was badly wounded.

"I see you survived the arrow shot" the man said with a smile as he eyed Eugene's hand over his side. Eugene just glared at the man. "Where's my family?" He said sternly.

The man chuckled. "Why don't you come down and well talk?" Eugene glared hard at the man for a moment before sliding down. He clinched his teeth as his feet hit the ground, and he managed to retain the cries of pain that were begging to be heard. Max gave him an unsure look but Eugene calmly patted the white stallion. He walked up to the man with Max following close behind.

"You have the money I asked for?" Eugene sighed. He wasn't sure how to handle this, even with years and years of experience of getting out of trouble. But there was no butting around the bush this time. Eugene shook his head looking straight into the man's cold eyes. The man could see he wasn't lying and he burned with anger.

"Very well" he said as calmly as he could and suddenly sent a blow into Eugene's stomach. Eugene groaned in pain and sunk to his knees, gasping for air. Max snorted fiercely and stood protectively in front of Eugene. The man disappeared through the door, and a moment later came out with Rapunzel. "Eugene!" she cried and pulled to try to free herself from the rope that had tied her hands behind her back.

"not so fast!" the man cried and pulled Rapunzel back lifting a dagger to her throat.

"no!" Eugene cried through the pain. The man smiled wickedly and turned his head to the door. "Henry!" he called and a moment later the younger man came out holding a squirming Julia. Eugene struggled to get to his feet as Max offered support.

"Now's the moment of truth Rider." The man said wickedly. "What are you willing to pay to save your little family?" The man tightened his grip on Rapunzel and she gasped as the cold blade came to touch her skin. Without a moment's hesitation Eugene spoke up. "Kill me instead." "no Eugene!" Rapunzel cried. Both men smiled at each other as Henry let go of Julia and she ran to Eugene. Eugene hugged Julia tightly. He swore his heart broke as he gently pushed her away. He had to be strong for her sake. Julia teared up and ran off crying. Eugene was surprised they didn't run after her but he guessed they got what they wanted now. Almost immediately, Henry came up to Eugene and tied his hands tightly behind his back. Rapunzel started to cry and yelled out in protest. "No! Please! Eugene!" Eugene hung his head sadly in defeat. There was no way out now.

The man roughly let go of Rapunzel and pushed her to the ground. Eugene boiled up with anger. "don't hurt her! You can see she's expecting!" The man just shrugged it off. Rapunzel scrambled to her feet and ran to Eugene and threw her arms around his neck. For one second the world froze. Eugene buried his face in her hair as she squeezed him tighter. He wished that moment lasted forever. But it was over all too soon as she was pulled away. Eugene's only regrets; he will never get to see his baby, or see Julia again, but the one he hated the most, is that he couldn't hold Rapunzel in his arms one last time. Suddenly he received a blow on his wound and he heard Rapunzel scream as he sank to his knees. He keeled over and was lying on his side when someone kicked him in the stomach. His back arched, his head flew back in pain as he gasped for air. His vision began to swim when he felt another hard kick on his deep wound and it started to bleed heavily again. The men laughed and gave him a series of punches and kicks and slaps and harsh words. Suddenly they stopped, he didn't know why, but they stopped. But he didn't care anymore, the pain was too much and darkness was threatening to overcome him. Then he felt a pair of gentle hands untie his binds and quickly turn him over on his back. He felt soft cloth around him as he was being held by thin delicate arms. He heard a series of faint shouts and yells and then silence. Then he heard a voice, the sweetest voice ever.

"Eugene?" he knew that voice. It as Rapunzel. Rapunzel. The love of his life, his destiny, his dream. He tried to stay and listen to that sweet sound of her voice, but the pain was too great and he fell into darkness.


	14. Chapter 14

Eugene's Treasure:

chapter 14

"no,no, Eugene!" Rapunzel cried as she tried to gently shake him awake. "Eugene, hold on! mother! dad!" the king and queen were already at her side. "get the prince home!" the king stated loudly to the guards. the guards gently picked Eugene up and placed him in a carrage. the others were curently accupied getting the two criminals to prison. the queen helped Rapunzel up from the ground. suddenly Rapunzel gasped and grabbed her stomach. she fewll to her knees. "Rapunzel!"the queen said with a concerned voice. "mother!" Rapunzel gasped. "i-i think its time!" the queens eyes widened and she called for the king. soon, Rapunzel was in the carrage sitting next to Eugene. she gasped sharply as the speeding carrage hit a bump. she looked over at Eugene. he had not aroused yet.

...

Rapunzel moaned and started breathing heavily as she lay on the bed. "mother" she said looking around. the queen brushed some hair from her daughters face. "shhh, im here." Rapunzel gasped again and squeezed her mothers hand. "i cant do this...without..Eu-Eugene" the queen sighed. just then the doctor came into the room. "your majesty" he said addressing the queen. the queen stood up and walked over to him. "i am only one man, i cannot nurse two people at the same time." he paused for a moment. "the prince's time is running out." the queen stared at him. "Eugene is...dying?" she whispered so Rapunzel couldn't hear. the doctor nodded slowly. the queen gasped putting her hand over her mouth. tears threatened to rain down her cheeks but she coudnt cry now, she had to be strong for Rapunzel. Rapunzel groaned loudly and the doctor hastily made his way over to her. the queen was at her side in a second.

after a greeat deal of struggling, pushing and screaming, the baby was born. the doctor gasped at how long the little girls hair was. for a baby, it was rather long. she had chocolate brown hair that reached down just past her shoulders. the queen wrapped her in a pink blanket and laid her in Rapunzel's arms. Rapunzel beamed down at her little girl. she was surprised at how long her hair was and she smiled at the fact that it was the color of Eugene's hair. Eugene. she suddenly remembered he wasnt there. "were is Eugene?" she asked looking to her mother. the queens smile faded into a sad expression. Rapunzel eyes widened and she looked to the doctor. the doctor looked down at the princess with sad eyes. "the prince is..." Rapunzel waited for him to asnwer. "prince Eugene is dying. he said finally and looked down. Rapunzel world had shattered. Eugene? dying? how could this be? she rose slowly and swung her legs over the side of the bed. "no Rapunzel, wait!" the queen saqid hastily. "your much to weak to get up now." Rapunzel looked at her, and the queen saw the determination in her eyes. there was no stopping her. with help ffrom the queen and the doctor, Rapunzel made it down the hall and into the room where Eugene was. she handed her baby, their baby, to the queen and rushed over to Eugene. she was sore but she didnt care.

she took his face in her hands. his eyes were closed and she could hardly tell he was breathing.

"no,no,no,no,no Eugene?" she asked hastily. Eugene coughed, he could taste the blood at the back of his throat.

"no...look at me! look at me!" Rapunzel begged as she brushed some hair from his face. "dont go, hold on Eugene!" she turned to her mother and the queen handed her the little pink bundle. Rapunzel held the little girl close to Eugene. "look Eugene, look at your daughter." Eugene eyes epened slightly and he saw the little brown haired baby in Rapunzel's arms. "shes beautiful" he weezed. Eugene wanted to hold his daughter but he coudnt even lift his arms. "we still have to name her" Rapunzel pointed out. Eugene thought for a moment. "Samantha" he whispered. Rapunzel smiled. "Gene" she finished and they both smiled and looked at their daughter. their new princess, Samantha Gene. Eugene looked at Rapunzel one last time and closed his eyes. his last breath escaped his mouth and his body went limp. he was gone.

Rapunzel stared at him for a moment when Samantha started to cry. "oh!" Rapunzel's own tears were threatening to fall. "shhh, its ok" she said and she started to choke up. but the little baby kept crying. "how about i sing you a lullaby?" she said as a tear fell from her eye. she took a deep breath and started to sing.

"_Flower, gleam and glow,_

_Let your power shine..."_

Rapunzel stopped when she noticed. Samantha's hair...it was...glowing! Rapunzel kept singing.

"_Make the clock reverse,_

_bring back what once was mine,_

_what once was mine."_

Rapunzel laid Samantha's hair across Eugene's wound and the golden glowing hair instantly started healing it. Rapunzel finished the song and looked at Eugene's face. she held her breath, hoping, praying, that he would be ok. her spirits lifted as Eugene's eyes slowly fluttered open and he softly gasped, taking air into his lungs.

"Rapunzel?" he asked and looked at her confused. Rapunzel beamed at him and then back at Samantha. she handed to him and this time, he found he had the strength to lift his arms and he held his daughter. he smiled down at her then up at Rapunzel, still seaarching for an asnwer. Rapunzel just started to sing. Eugene's eyes widened when he saw his daughter's hair turn from a deep brown to a glowing golden color. after Rapunzel finished, Samantha's hair went back to normal. Eugene looked up at her. before he could, Rapunzel giggled. "dont freak out!" she said and took a seat next to him and they admired their little bundle of joy.

suddenly Julia bursted into the room and jumped onto the bed. "wow!" ive got a little sister?" she asked excitedly as Rapunzel and Eugene nodded. she squeeled with joy and cuddled up next to Eugene and he let her hold Samantha. Eugene beamed down at his two daughters then turned his head and kissed his wife. He was certain no man had ever been as happy as he was at that moment. even if he wasnt a prince, living in a casyle, he would still be happy. he had his family, his greatest treasure.

**THE END**


	15. Chapter 15

Eugene's Treasure: Part 2

Ch 1

Eugene couldn't sleep. Having died twice in his life time, he was frightful that it may be the last time he closed his eyes if he went to sleep. Instead he stared at the ceiling above him. it had been a long week. He was shot, Julia had been kidnapped along with Rapunzel, he had been punched, slapped and kicked multiple times in his abdomen. Then Rapunzel gave birth, then he died, and with the help of his new daughter's magic hair, came back to life…_again_. But why didn't Susan have magic hair? maybe she did and they never noticed. After all, now that he thought about it, Rapunzel _was _trying to let go of her past so she _never _spoke of the tower, her hair, Gothel or the song. Eugene's train of thought crashed when he heard the soft cries of Samantha. Rapunzel slowly stirred and rose from the bed. Eugene sat up and Rapunzel turned to look at him.

"Oh! I'm sorry Eugene, I didn't mean to wake you." She spoke softly. Eugene shook his head. "You didn't, don't worry."

"Oh, ok" Rapunzel turned and walked over to the basinet at the end of their bed and picked up a crying Samantha.

"Anything wrong?" Eugene asked worriedly. Rapunzel shook her head. "No, she's just hungry" with that said, Rapunzel carried the infant and crawled into the bed next to Eugene. Rapunzel hummed as Samantha stopped crying and nursed from her mother. Eugene fell back on his pillow and once again stared at the ceiling.

"so, I didn't wake you?" Rapunzel asked looking over at him.

"no" Eugene kept his eyes on the ceiling. Rapunzel thought for a moment. "well, what did? Was it Samantha?"

Once again Eugene shook his head no. Rapunzel looked down at the baby then back to Eugene. "What did?"

Eugene sighed. "Nothing, I never actually went to sleep." Rapunzel picked up the pocket watch on her bedside table. "It's nearly 2:00! Why didn't you go to sleep?"

Eugene looked at Rapunzel lovingly and brushed some hair away from her face. "don't worry about it" he said reassuringly. After about a half an hour of feeding Samantha, Rapunzel finally got the little princess to drift off to sleep. Rapunzel put the baby back in her basinet and then got back into her own bed and nuzzled up to Eugene. Eugene gasped sharply and Rapunzel looked at him with concerned eyes. "Your f-feet are c-cold." He shivered and Rapunzel giggled. It was going to be a long night for Eugene.

**I know this is short but it's a start! Still figuring out a plot for the sequel! Please comment and share your ideas!**


	16. Chapter 16

Eugene's Treasure: part 2:

chapter 2:

Rapunzel poked at Eugene's head. "Eugene" she whispered trying to wake him up. Rapunzel had gotten up early that morning and was fully dressed. "Eugene!" she said again, this time a little louder. Eugene groaned and buried his head under his pillow. Rapunzel crossed her arms. "i have to go meet mother and dad for a meeting and like it or not your on baby duty." she pulled the covers off of him and grabbed his feet. "Eugene! get up!" she tugged at his feet, trying to pull him out of bed while Eugene groaned in protest. Rapunzel could see she wasnt getting anywhere doing this so she climbed over Eugene and sat on his back. she leaned down to whisper in his ear. "i know where your tickelish Eugene Fitzherbert." Eugene stuck his head out of his pillow to meet her gaze. "you wouldnt" he said glarring at her. Rapunzel smirked. "try me" and with that, she tickled the back of his neck. "hey!" Eugene said between laughs. "cut that out!" Rapunzel giggled as he suddenly sat up, knocking her off his back and he lept out of bed, trying to get away from her.

"ok, OK!" he said loudly as she walked up to him and he grabbed her wrists before she could tickle him again. "you got me" Eugene said chuckling. Rapunzel giggled and walked over to the basinet and picked up Samantha. she then walked back over to Eugene and handed him their daughter. "have fun!" Rapunzel said and she kissed Samantha's head. "dress her wont you?" Rapunzel asked Eugene as she made her way over to the bedroom door and looked back at him for an answer. Eugene nodded and Rapunzel left with a smile on her face.

Eugene looked down at the small baby in his arms. he could feel her tiny heartbeat softly beating. he had forgotten how fragile and small babies were. he was so used to carrying Julia that he forgot how light babies were. compared to her sister, Samantha was like a feather. Samantha yawned and opened her eyes to meet her father's loving gaze. she studdied his face. Eugene noticed how her coloring was so similer to his. she had gorgious long chocolate brown hair and she had deep hazel eyes, much like his own but maybe a shade lighter. Eugene couldnt quite tell but he thought she had Rapunzel's nose. Eugene slowly ran his finger over her cheek, marveling at how soft it was. he then touched her tiny fingers which were curled up around her blanket, she then opened her little hand and Eugene place his finger inside of her hand. she then closed her small, delicate fingers around his finger. Eugene smiled down at her and carried her over to the changing table. next to it, there was a chest of drewers and he opened one of them. inside was a few baby outfits and a lot of little dresses. Eugene picked up a tiny green dress and managed to get Samantha into it. after he was done, he picked her up to admire his work. Eugene decided green was her best color. he then noticed Smantha staring at his chin. she lifted her hand to feel his scratchy gotee. she gripped at it a tugged on it causing Eugene to wince. he pulled her away and her chin started to quiver. Suddenly she started to softly cry and Eugene brought her closer to him.

"hey, its ok Sam" Eugene said and realized it was the first time he had ever addressed her as Sam. Samantha stopped crying when he said her name. "you like being called Sam?" the baby girl smiled slightly. Eugene smiled as well. "well alright then, that will be my special name for you, ok?" Eugene smiled as Sam fiddled with his hand, marveling at the texture of it.

later that day, Eugene took Julia and Samantha out to the palace gardens. Julia played in the flower beds and mazes as Eugene showed Sam the flowers. the tiny baby loved all the wonderful colors and Eugene spoke softly to her, telling her all about how daisies were mother's favorites and that roses were his. Samantha seemed to like the roses, Eugene noticed, and helped her to hold one. he cut off all the thorns to prevent her from cutting her soft little fingers. Eugene couldnt bear the thought of Sam getting hurt. she was so small and delicate, he would do anything to protect her.

**hey guys, thought this was kinda boring, sorry. i just wanted to express the special connection Sam has with her daddy! please review! ill update soon! i promise! XD**


	17. Chapter 17

Eugene's Treasure: part 2:

ch 3:

Rapunzel stared at her reflection in the mirror as she sat at her vanity. she sighed as she finished brushing her short brown hair and place the brush on the vanity. she heard a knock at the door and she heard the sound of heavy boots walk into the room. Eugene came up behind her and kissed her cheek.

"you ready?" he asked looking at her through the mirror's reflection. Rapunzel sighed and nodded, standing up and turning to meet his gaze.

"i just...im...i dont like things like this." she said looking down. Eugene knew she didnt like violence, well, at least stuff like a hanging. she certanly didnt have any problem hitting his head with a frying pan the first time they met. Eugene hugged her. "i know"

Rapunzel leaned against his chest and thought for a moment. "im glad Julia and Samantha wont have to watch. Eugene nodded.

...

later that day, everyone had assembled at the gallows. even some commoners had come to watch the hanging. Eugene stomach turned. he never liked the gallows, even if he was safe now from getting exicuted himself. Rapunzel didnt like the place either. there was a sense of death that ligured in the air. the royal family made their way to a small balcony and sat down in the chairs provided for them. Rapunzel moved her chair closer to Eugene. she really did hate things like this. she hated seeing people die, nomatter who they were. Eugene put a comforting armaround her pitete shoulders.

finally, the two prisoners were dragged out in chains and they walked up the ramp and onto the stage-like platform. the two prisoners stared at the royal family. one of the guards spoke up.

"on this day, Henry Daily and John Rossen are guilty of attempt murder and kidnapping, and are here by sentenced to hang by the neck until dead. any last words you may say it now."

Rapunzel stared at them, waiting for them to say something.

John spoke in a chilling tone. "you, your highness." he said pointing at Rapunzel. "should have good reason to be paranoid" Eugene instinctivly tightened his gripp around Rapunzel.

after a moment, a guard placed the ropes around their necks and walked over to the lever. Rapunzel closed her eyes and buried her face into Eugene's vest. the guard gripped the lever and pulled.

...

Rapunzel ran into the bedroom and threw herself on the large bed. Tears streamed down her face as Eugene walked into the room quickly. he panted from racinng after her and made his way over to the bed.

"Rapunzel?" he stood at the end of the bed and leaned in, placing his hands on the sheets to support his upper body. "Whats wrong?" Rapunze kept crying and shook her head. Eugene knew she hated seeing people die. he picked her up in his arms and sat her on his lap and held her tightly, yet gently. She cried as she hid her face in the crook of his neck. "shhh, i know" Eugene spoke softly. "im so scared" she squeeked out and hugged him tighter. "not for myself, but for my family, for Julia and Samantha...for you." she let out another fit of sobs as he rubbed her back soothingly. "You dont have to be" Eugene said, knowing his words wern't real comforting.


	18. Chapter 18

Eugene's Treasure: part 2:

ch 4:

_Eugene was in the darkness again. there was no light except on him. he walked forward a ways, searching for a way out. suddenly Rapunzel appeared in front of him. She was clutching something dressed in green. she was crying hard and nearly screaming out in agony. Eugene knelt beside her. "Rapunzel , wha.." he stopped when he recognized the limp little body in Rapunzel's arms. "Sam?" he said taking the little girl into his own arms. "Samantha!" he tried to shake her awake but the baby wouldnt move. she wasnt even breathing. "oh no, no! Sam! im so sorry Sam! im so sorry!" he cried as his tears started to fall. he looked up to llooke at Rapunzel but she wasnt there. she was gone. he looked back down but only saw his arms, empty. once again he was alone in the darkness._

Eugene woke with a start. he breathed heavily as his eyes searched the room. he was in his bed, in his bedroom. he ran his hand through his hair and looked to his right. Rapunzel was peacefully sleeping next to him. "_it was only a dream" _he thought, and tried to calm himself.

...

the next morning, Eugene took Rapunzel for a stroll int the gardens, just the two of them. Rapunzel loved smelling the flowers and listening to the birds sing. then she thought a moment and turned to face Eugene. "what happened last night, what...what was wrong?" Eugene sighed. "just a dream" he said, not wanting to tell her about it and add more stress on her shoulders. running a kingdom while raising two girls and having a husband like him was enough. Eugene thought and smiled to reassure her. he then cupped her cheek with his hand. "dont worry about it princess." he said and leaned in to kiss her when Rapunzel's gaze traveled past his head and to the palace wall. her eyes widened and she quickly turned Eugene around. Eugene was confused by this and was about toask her what was wrong when Rapunzel suddenly jerked forward and her face twisted into a painful expression. "Eugene" she gasped and sank to her knees. Eugene knelt beside her. his heart stattered when he saw it, sticking out of her lower back. the arrow was long, and it seemed all too familier. Eugene's gaze shot up to the castle wall just in time to see someone dressed in a black cloak dissapear behind it.

his whole being raged with anger. how dare they he thought and suddenly brought his attention back to Rapunzel. she was gasping for air and tears started streaming out of the corners of her eyes. Eugene held her in his arms brushing her hair out of her face.

"Rapunzel, look at me, look at me Rapunzel." he said supporting her head.

"Eugene" she weezed. "it hurts" she said and grabbed onto his vest. "i know, just hold on" he turned her over in his arms to get a better view of the wound. thinking quickly, Eugene tore off a peice of his sleeve and put it up to her mouth. "bite this hard" he said and he placed it in her mouth. he then placed his hand around the arrow. he hesitated for a moment and then pulled it out quickly. Rapunzel clinched her teeth down on the cloth and screamed through it for only a brief second. "some guards" Eugene said as he picked her up and started carrying her inside the castle.

...

Rapunzel felt warmth suddenly surround her and the pain slowly dissapeared. she opened her eyes to see Eugene's face. he looked relieved.

"Eugene? Wha..." she noticed she didnt hurt anymore and she just felt, well, normal. Rapunzel looked around. she was in her room, on the bed, and her family was surrounding her. she looked down just in time to see Samantha's hair turn from a golden color to a chocolate brown.

"Sam's hair healed you." Eugene explained and helped her sit up. Rapunzel looked down at her daughter then back to Eugene. "so thats what it feels like, huh?" she said in amazement. Eugene laughed. "yeah" Rapunzel thought for a moment. "who was that?" Eugene shook his head. "i dont know" Rapunzel held Samantha closer to her. "well, whoever they are they need to be stopped before someone really gets hurt." she said in a stern voice looking up at her father.

"we will do everything in our power to get to the bottom of this, i promise." the king said and he held his wifes hand. Rapunzel nodded and smiled a little then looked back to Eugene. "thanks by the way" he said brushing his hand through her hair. Rapunzel sighed dramaticly. "What would you do without me?" she said and giggled. Eugene laughed and they both looked down at their daughter.

...

later that evening, the royal family sat down for dinner. Eugene sat imbetween Rapunzel and Julia while Samantha sat in a highchair next to Rapunzel. the king sat at the head of the table and the queen sat to his left, opposite from Rapunzel. Julia made a face at the brocholie and looked up at Eugene. Eugene felt sorry for her and quickly ate hers for her before Rapunzel could see. the queen saw this however and smirked. Eugene grinned sheepishly att her, his mouth full with brocholie. he chewed and swallowed it hard. nothing got past the queen..._ever_.

Eugene choked on the dry brocholie and Rapunzel turned to look at him. "you ok?" she asked rubbing his back. Eugene nodded and when she turned away, he silently spit it out in his napkin. they really needed to get a new chef around here. Julia giggled and Eugene shot her a glare and mouthed. "you ow me" she giggled again and continued nibbling on her peice of garlic bread.

...

even later that night, after Eugene put Julia to bed, he walked into his and Rapunzel's bedroom. Rapunzel was laying down Samantha in her basinet ad gently tugged the sleeping baby in. Eugene took off his vest and plopped down onto the soft bed. he then kicked ff his boots and started drifting off to sleep. Rapunzel climbed into the bed and snuggled up next to him.

"Eugene?"

"hmm?"

"i love you"

"m hmm hm hmm."

Rapunzel giggled and blew out the candle.


	19. Chapter 19

Eugene's Treasure: Part 2

Eugene stared at Julia for a moment, letting her words process in his brain.

"you want a what?" eugene asked, making sure he heard her correctly. "i want a little brother" Julia said with a smile. Eugene thought for a moment. Rapunzel had just had a baby not nine months ago and they hadnt even discussed about having more, and now Julia wants another one? eugene looked back down at his daughter. "well, uh..." Eugene racked his brain for an answer. "why? i mean, we just had a baby." Julia frowned. "yes and she's a girl but now i want a little brother!" Eugene again had to think for a moment. he had always wanted a son, to teach to thiev and other crimes like that, but that was before he met Rapunzel. now what would he do with a son? fishing? no, Eugene hated fishing. sword fighting? maybe but the boy would have to be old enough. Eugene came back to the real word and looked down again at Julia who was patiently waiting for an answer.

"uh...i will think about it...ok?" Julia nodded at his responce and slid off his lap. Eugene groaned and rubbed his temples. another child? he would love it, of course, but it just seemed too soon.

suddenly a maid bursted into the room. Eugene noticed she was the maid, or nurse, that took care of Sam when Rapunzel was busy. she looked pale and worried. Eugene stood up emedietly. "whats wrong?" he said searching the maids face for an answer.

"please your highness, its princess Samantha" before she could even finish her sentence, Eugene was out the door and practicly sprinting down the hall and into the baby's room.

the blood drained from Eugene's face as he held his baby girl. the little figure was pale and she seemed like she was having a hard time breathing. "Sam?" Eugene asked hastily and brushed the hair away from her face. then a little drop of white liquid appeared from her mouth nd Eugene knew what was wrong. he held her up and leaned her ageanst his shoulder and gently, but firmly patted her back. Samantha coughed and choked and finally burped. Eugene could hear her breathe ageanst his ear and he knew she was fine. he brought her back down in his arms and she giggled. Eugene looked to the maid or nurse who looked relieved.

"you have to burp babies after feeding them milk, or else they choke." Eugene said to her, slightly annoyed. she nodded and bowed and left the room.

Eugene looked back at his daughter. "dont scare me like that Sam!" he said waving his finger in front of her face. the baby just giggled and grabbed his finger. Eugene heard something and looked up to the window just in time to see something black dissapear behind the wall outside. Eugene's eyes widened and he instinktively held Samantha closer to him. he made hi way over to the window and looked out. there was no one out there except palace guards patroling the court yard. was it his imagination? Eugene looked down at Samantha. "did you see anything?" he asked and the baby gurggled happily. he gazed out the window again. was it his imagination or not?

**hey guys i know this is short but ive been sooooo busy this week! im so sorry! im still having writers block...blah. hey i have a challenge for you guys. its a contest!**

**here it is...**

**make a trailer for Eugene's Treasure and put it on youtube! yeah, i thought it might be fun! please try it! love you all!**

**- SparkleWolf**


	20. Chapter 20

Eugene's Treasure: part 2:

Chapter 20:

Rapunzel loved mornings in the castle. Everything was so quiet and still, no maids buzzed around, hardly any birds chirped on the balcony, and there was no noisy clanking of the guard's heavy armor. She loved waking up to find herself wrapped up in Eugene's strong, protective arms. Her eyes fluttered open and she stared lovingly at her sleeping Eugene. His face was so peaceful and …well…perfect. She didn't want to move, to get up, to ruin this moment. She couldn't move even if she wanted to. Eugene had wrapped his arms tightly, yet gently around her. She could, however, move her arm. She reached up and slowly traced Eugene's jaw line, her fingers hardly touching his skin. Eugene's face twitched slightly and Rapunzel couldn't help but softly giggle at his reaction. Waking up from Rapunzel soft giggles, Eugene slowly fluttered open his eyes. He grinned sleepily at his princess.

"Good morning Eugene" Rapunzel gazed into her husband's hazel eyes. Eugene moaned and shifted onto his back and started to slowly drift back off to sleep. Rapunzel frowned. "Oh no you don't" she said sitting up and started to shake him. "Eugene, wake up, you have to go to that meeting thing today, remember?" Eugene groaned and pulled the thick sheets over his head. Rapunzel sighed. Suddenly Samantha started to cry. The couple could hear her across the hall. Before Rapunzel could respond, Eugene flung back the covers, practically throwing them over Rapunzels head and leapt out of bed. Without even stopping to put on his boots, Eugene ran across the room and across the hall into the little princess's room. Rapunzel pulled the sheets off her head and blew some stray strands out of her face. She then put on her robe and made her way across the hall and into her daughter's room. By now, Samantha had stopped crying and was giggling in her father's arms. Rapunzel smiled at him. "babies do cry Eugene" Eugene looked up at her with worry on his face. "Sorry, I just…so many bad things have….sorry." Rapunzel's face softened when she heard the pain in her husband's voice. He truly was frightened for his family. She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "That's what this meeting will fix hopefully."

….

Later that day, a meeting was to be held one of the large rooms of the castle. Many officers and important people were there, all sitting at a long table. The king sat at the end and Eugene sat to his right. A short man stood up after the crowd of men had settled.

"We have gathered here today, your majesty," he said gesturing to the king. "And your highness," he said gesturing to Eugene. "to discuss the matter of security to the royal family. As we all know, nearly a year ago, Princess Rapunzel and Princess Julia were kidnapped. Prince Eugene was also shot at and fatally wounded." The man paused for a moment searching for words. "we had found the two convicts and they were hanged, but now gentlemen." He paused for dramatic effect. "the royal family is being attacked yet again. Who is this group of mysterious black-cloaked men who are obviously trying to harm the and even possibly kill the royal family of Corona." Eugene stomach turned. He hated thinking about his family in so much danger.

"What should we do to prevent this uprising from happening?" The short man sat back down after scanning the faces of the men. Eugene had an idea, but he didn't know if it was proper to speak up. I mean he _was_ the prince wasn't he? Before he could change his mind, he was on his feet and he clenched his fists tightly. He looked to the king for permission to speak. When the king nodded, he relaxed a little.

"I propose" he said and cleared his throat. "We assemble a search party for them. It's the most we can do at this time." He looked back to the king and when he saw the kings proud looking smile, he couldn't help but feel the king was pleased with his proposal. But he didn't know he would soon regret ever saying a word.


	21. Chapter 21

Eugene's Treasure: part2:

Chapter 21:

Rapunzel stared at Eugene with unbelieving eyes. "They want you to what?" Eugene rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "They can't ask you to do that! I need you here! Why would they just throw you out into danger like that?" Rapunzel had been pacing and looked back at her husband for an answer.

Eugene shrugged. "Maybe they thought I was the right man for the job?" Rapunzel thought for a moment, her mind racing. The council had just asked Eugene to lead the search party for the mysterious black-hooded traitors who kept threatening the royal family. They nearly killed Eugene, had severely injured Rapunzel, and had kidnapped Julia. Even though everyone was safe and sound now, something had to be done to put an end to them. Rapunzel sighed and ran into Eugene's strong arms, burying her head under his chin. Eugene held her tightly. "I'll be fine Blondie" Rapunzel looked up at him. "Promise?" Eugene looked deep into her emerald eyes. He would do anything for this woman. He knew the chances of surviving this mission were unlikely though. He kissed her forehead and whispered. "Promise"

…..

Eugene packed only a few items in his trusty old satchel. He knew from experience, only pack what you needed. His keen ears picked up the sound of a creaky floor board and turned to see Julia standing in the doorway.

"Hi Julia, what's wro-"he was cut off as the little girl ran over to him and jumped into his arms. "Please, please don't leave me daddy!" The small girl had tears streaming down her cheeks. Eugene hugged her and stroked her golden hair. "Shh, it's ok…ill only be gone for a little while." Eugene moved the hair from her face and wiped her tears away. "can you do something for me?" Julia nodded, rubbing her eyes. Eugene sighed. "will you watch over mama and Sam for me while I'm gone?" Julia paused for a moment and then nodded. "that's my girl" Eugene said giving her a confident smile. Julia hugged again and he picked her up and carried her to her bedroom. He layed her down in her bed and tucked her in, handing her her favorite teddy bear. He kissed her on the forehead and blew out her candle. "goodnight Julia"

Goodnight daddy, I love you"

Eugene smiled. "I love you too" he quietly closed the door behind him and walked down the hall into his bedroom. Rapunzel was on the bed softly humming Samantha to sleep. Eugene grabbed his old blue vest and put it on. "how do I look?" he said putting on a flashy Flynn smile. Rapunzel softly giggled. "like Flynn Rider" her smile suddenly faded when she spotted the dark red stain on the vest's front. Eugene's searched her face. "What's wrong?" Rapunzel looked down. "the maids…they never could get that stain out…could they?" Eugene looked down and noticed the deep red blood stain. He looked back up to meet his wife's gaze.

"Don't worry, I'll come back…I promise." He knew he was stretching the truth, saying that.

"That would be nice" Rapunzel said with a sad grin. Eugene picked up his satchel and swung it over his shoulder. "Must you go tonight?" Rapunzel asked in a whisper. Eugene nodded and walked over to her. He placed a hand over Samantha's head. "See ya Sam" he whispered. He then turned to Rapunzel and kissed her softly on the lips. They lingered for a moment when Eugene finally pulled away. Rapunzel had tears streaming down her face as he walked out the door.

…..

Eugene was met by a group of mounted palace guards outside the palace gates. Max was eagerly waiting for him. "hey boy" he said quietly as he patted the white stallions neck. After securing his satchel to the saddle, he climbed onto the great horse and looked up at the palace. He couldn't help but feel it would be the last time he would ever see it. finally the group rode off into the moonlight.


	22. Chapter 22

Eugene's Treasure: part 2

Chapter 22:

Eugene sat down in his tent. It had been a long and exhausting day of traveling and searching and scouting. It was late, the stars were out and the camp fire that was blazing just an hour ago was now dying down. The rest of the guards were falling asleep but not the Prince Consort. Eugene pulled out a piece of paper and a quill and ink. He was going to write back to Corona. Back to Rapunzel and his family. He was sure they were eager to learn of their discoveries. He dipped the feather in the ink and began writing.

_Rapunzel,_

_ Things are going well, don't worry I'm fine other than a sore tailbone from riding Max all day. We haven't had much luck on tracking the mysterious group down but don't fret, we will get to the bottom of this, I promise. Kiss your mother and kids for me and give my regards to the king. I will return soon. _

_Eugene_

…..

Rapunzel paced in her bedroom. Eugene's last letter had come nearly a two weeks ago and people were starting to talk. What if something happened to them? What if Eugene was killed? All these questions haunted Rapunzel's thoughts.

"Rapunzel, dear" Rapunzel suddenly stopped and looked over her shoulder to see her mother in the door way. "Stop pacing and relax. You're only making it harder on yourself" Rapunzel nodded sadly.

"but what if something happened to him mother?" She rubbed her hands nervously. The queen smiled gently. "This _is_ Flynn Rider were talking about right?" Rapunzel smirked at the comment but then her smile faded.

"don't worry sweetheart" the queen hugged her daughter affectionately. Just then there was a knock at the door and a page boy entered carrying a letter on a tray. Before the boy could even get the words out of his mouth, Rapunzel had already snatched up the letter and was tearing it apart trying to get it open. The queen giggled and thanked the page before he left. Rapunzel read the note while mouthing the words in an inaudible whisper.

"well? Any news?" the queen asked as she sat down on the sofa.

…

The search party pressed on as Eugene lead the way. He missed his family terribly and it was hard to think about anyone or anything else other than Rapunzel and Julia and Samantha. Eugene's train of thought stopped and his brain went into alert mode when Max snorted and waved his head around wildly. The horse pawed at the ground and switched his tail fiercely.

"What is it Max?" Eugene asked him, rubbing the stallion's neck in an attempt to get him to calm down. But the horse did no such thing, in fact, he took off running through the trees. Eugene nearly fell off from the sudden burst, but managed to regain the reigns. He didn't try to stop the horse this time. He wasn't injured and he had a knife in his boot. He was ready for anything that was to come…or so he thought.

Turning a corner, the horse and his rider came to a stop and spotted cloaked people disappear behind a tree. Eugene and the horse heard a clicking noise and Eugene knew it was a cross bow being cocked. Suddenly the horse bolted foreword and Eugene tried to stop him.

"no Max!" he said through gritted teeth as he tried to get the horse to stop but it was no use and before anyone had a chance to think, an arrow was released at a terrifying speed. Max was fast though and reared before it could harm Eugene. All Eugene heard was Max's loud cry of pain before he was flung from the horse's back and landed near a tree with a thump.

…

Eugene opened his eyes. It wasn't much later sense when he was thrown from Max. Max…Maximus. Where was he? He needed to find him. Eugene winced as he sat up. He felt something wet and warm on his arm and looked over to see blood dripping down it. Suddenly he heard the sound of heavy armor and looked up to see guards rushing towards him.

"Your highness!" they cried as they emedietly started to dress Eugene's wound. Eugene sat up more and tried to stand. "Where's Max? I've got to find him" he looked around but didn't see the white stallion anywhere. The guards only kept tending to the prince's wound.

"Stop worrying about me and go find max!" he said in a slightly annoyed tone. Most of the guards left to search for the horse while a few stayed behind to look after Eugene. Eugene groaned. Their mission was starting to fall apart.


	23. Chapter 23

Eugene's Treasure: part 2

Chapter 23

Eugene groaned in pain as he tried bending his arm. He couldn't move it no matter how hard he tried. It was clear that it was broken. And no matter how many times the guard told him to hold still, he couldn't. Max was still out there and it was up to him to find his friend.

"I have to go look for Max" Eugene stated through gritted teeth. "I'm sorry your highness but…" they both froze when they heard the bushes rustling and a twig snap. "Your still too…" the guard said slowly and stopped when he heard footsteps. "…weak" he whispered and reached for his sword in a flash. Suddenly men dressed in black jumped out from behind the trees and shrubs. The Corona guard yelled out to the other guard searching for medical supplies and charged at the men with his sword in hand. One of the men slashed his sword across the soldier's chest and he fell. The other soldier cried out for help as he stood protectively in front of the Prince Consort. But he was killed too with another quick flash of a sword. Eugene watched in shock as he fell to the ground, dead. He cringed when he heard a cold voice start to speak.

"Well if it isn't the Prince Consort of Corona" Eugene looked up at the man in black as his men surrounded him. The man removed his hood to reveal his face. To Eugene's surprise, it wasn't a man at all, but a girl, about 19 or so. Graceful curls fell around her neck as she knelt down to his level. "G…Gothel?" Eugene asked, terribly confused. But as she came closer it was plain that this was not Gothel. A gush of relieve came over Eugene.

The young woman simply gave him a confused look. "No, I'm not…whatever you just said. I am the princess of Elisria? Does that ring any bells?" Eugene thought for a moment. "You were the one who never came to any of Corona's events…" Eugene said slowly. "You didn't come to my wedding or send any presents when Susan was born." "No" she interrupted. "But I did rejoice when your daughter so tragically died" she said laughing. Eugene's fists clenched. Oh how he wanted to strangle her to death.

She smirked when she saw the hatred and anger burning in Eugene's eyes. "Come prince, we will have a lot to catch up on." She said and motioned to her body guards. They quickly grabbed Eugene and chained his wrists. Eugene did his best to muffle a cry of pain when the pulled his broken arm back, but couldn't and cried out and groaned. "Be careful" the princess said. "He's hurt" she said puffing out her bottom lip. Eugene glared at her as they roughly dragged him away.

….

Rapunzel suddenly felt a powerful feeling shoot through her chest. Something was wrong and she knew it. She looked down at her arm to find she had goosebumps. Something was definitely wrong. Her thoughts were interrupted when Julia burst into the room, Samantha happily crawling after her.

"Momma!" She cried joyfully and leapt into Rapunzel's arms. Rapunzel giggled putting her down and picked up Samantha. "When is Daddy coming home?" Julia asked, her blue eyes full of hope. "Soon sweetie" Rapunzel said after a long sigh. The queen came into the room with a smile on her face. "here is a letter from Eugene!" she said happily handing it to Rapunzel. Rapunzel's spirits soared. Maybe he really was coming home soon! "open it mommy!" Julia exclaimed anxiously. Rapunzel ripped open the letter and read it quickly to herself before her eyes looked confused and worried. After a long moment, she spoke up. "Julia, would you please take Samantha into the other room and play with her? I would like to talk to Grandma." Julia sighed, disappointed. "Yes 'am" she said rolling her eyes and picked up Samantha and left the room.

The Queen stared at her daughter. "Rapunzel? What is it?" Rapunzel handed the letter to her mother. The queen read it.

_Rapunzel, _

_ Everything is going just __fine __great. Please don't worry about me, I'll be home __as soon__as__ soon. Please don't worry._

_ ~ Eugene_

The Queen looked up at Rapunzel. "Well, it seems that they will be home soon! That's wonderful!" Rapunzel turned to look at her mother. "No mother…something's wrong…I know it…I know Eugene." The Queen looked confused. "But he just said that he was fine" "exactly" Rapunzel interrupted. "And then he crossed it out and put _great_" the Queen looked down at the letter again. "He crossed it out here too" she said pointing to the paper. "He was going to say _I'll be home as soon as possible_. But then he just crossed it out and put _soon_"

"That's just it!" Rapunzel exclaimed. "He keeps changing his words like he is nervous or…scared." The queen passed the letter back to her. "That is odd" she exclaimed. Rapunzel nodded and turned the paper over. Then something caught her eye. On the bottom right hand corner was something written, but it was too tiny to read. "Mother!" Rapunzel gasped jumping up. The Queen was startled by her daughter's sudden actions but listened to her. "What?" She asked curiously.

"Look!" Rapunzel said excitedly. Her mother looked closer at it. There, in the bottom right hand corner was:

עזרה

The Queen gasped at the sight of it. "I…I think that's…Hebrew?" she asked confused. "I will get Mr. Leonard, my old language teacher!" Rapunzel said excited that she had possibly found a clue. Rapunzel raced down the hall with the letter in hand. When she finally reached Mr. Leonard's study, she busted through the doors and when she closed them, leaned on them, out of breath. Mr. Leonard came through the office door and was surprised to see the Princess.

"Princess Rapunzel?" he asked confused.

"Oh! Mr. Leonard!" Rapunzel gasped and rushed over to him. "yes, what can I do for you, your higness?"

Rapunzel handed him the letter. "Can you translate that?" she said pointing to the mystery word on the bottom.

"Hmm….its Hebrew"

"Yes!" Rapunzel exclaimed excitedly. "What does it mean though?"

"cant tell…hang on, let me look it up." He set the letter on his desk and walked over to his very large bookshelf and pulled out a thick book. He sat down at his desk and opened it, searching through the pages. After a few minutes of flipping pages back and forth and putting the pieces together he finally found it. "Ok…according to my research…" Rapunzel held her breath waiting for his answer. "Oh no…" He said and Rapunzel's heart stopped for a second. "What is it? What does it mean?" Mr. Leonard signed.

"Help"


	24. Chapter 24

Eugene's Treasure: part 2: **(thx for all your awesome reviews guys! luv u!)**

Chapter 24:

The black-clothed guards dragged Eugene down a dark, narrow corridor and roughly pushed him into a dark cell. Eugene groaned as he hit the hard cell floor and felt his broken arm shift painfully under his weight. Before he could look up, the guards slammed the heavy door shut and locked it.

Eugene mustered his strength and tried to sit up and leaned against the wall. He clutched his broken arm and tried to examine in the darkness. He felt weak and knew it was caused from the loss of blood. He tried to wrap his sleeve around his wound, but it didn't work very well. Al he could do was sit and wait. He prayed that Rapunzel would see the clue on the bottom right hand corner of his letter. The princess of Elisria had made him write a letter of reassurance back to Corona. But she didn't see the Hebrew word thankfully.

Suddenly the door was unlocked and a few guards came in. They grabbed Eugene and dragged him to his feet. After a long walk down another dark corridor, Eugene was led into a room and stood there, being held between two guards.

Another door opened and the princess walked in.

"Well good morning Eugene" she said smiling sweetly. Eugene just glared at her through his pain.

"Oh, really you should get that arm checked."

"Top of my to do list once I get back to Corona." Eugene stated.

"Who says you're going to make it back to Corona?" the princess asked coldly.

"I do" Eugene said trait out, trying not to show the fear he felt in his heart.

The princess laughed. "Well, good luck with that." She paused for a moment and told the guards to back away. She slowly circled Eugene observing him as she spoke.

"How old are you now Eugene? Twenty two?"

"Twenty five" Eugene corrected suspiciously.

"Well, I must say you look a few years younger for your age." She said lifting his broken arm and examining it. Eugene hissed.

"Thanks" He managed to moan.

"And how is your dear little wife?" she said with a sense of a sour taste in her mouth.

Eugene knew she was trying to information about his family but why?

"She is in health."

"Oh I'm so sorry!" she said with a frown. Eugene looked at her confused. By now she had stopped circling him and was frowning.

"What is it you want?" Eugene finally asked with a bit of frustration in his tone.

"The royal city of Corona dead of course!" she said like DUH!

Eugene was shocked by this and had that urge to suddenly run home and protect his family.

"But….why?" he asked, racking his brain for answers.

The princess sighed. "Ok, when Princess Rapunzel was kidnapped, I was the one selected to take the throne of Corona because her parents had given up all hope. And I _was_ about to rule over Corona on my sixteenth birthday, but guess who arrives but the lost Princess and the annoying rouge who brought her back and took away my throne!"

Eugene smirked slightly when she turned her back to him.

"And now" she said turning back around to face him. "I plan to get it back. But every time I attempted to kill one of you, your family always somehow survived!" She paused for a moment. "But I did succeed on one person." Eugene stopped breathing. He prayed she didn't hurt Rapunzel, Julia or Samantha while he was gone.

"I think her name was…_Susan_?"

Eugene's head shot up and he stared at her in disbelief. "And I shall soon have another to forget about."

Eugene finally knew the truth. "You bitch!" He whispered hoarsely. As soon as the words escaped his mouth, a blow from a guard came in contact with Eugene's stomach and he doubled over, groaning.

"Take him away" the princess said and laughed wickedly. The guards pulled him up and dragged him back down the corridor and shoved him into the cell. Once again, Eugene slammed down onto the cold, hard floor. The guards approached him.

"A little present from your new Princess." One said grinning evilly. Without warning, the guard rammed his foot into Eugene's stomach. Eugene threw his head back abruptly and wheezed, trying to remember how to breathe. The guard did this again and again; kicking the Prince Consort farther back into the room until Eugene was defenseless, his back against the wall. The guards snickered and sneered down at a now lethargic Eugene. Eugene didn't even try to back away or block the kicks anymore. He just closed his eyes shut when he saw the heavily armored boot rise backward and then fly for him at an awfully fast speed. There was a burst of pain and then nothing but total blackness.

….

The King shouted out orders to his men to organize search parties as fast as possible. Rapunzel gave directions to her mother about Samantha's schedule. Julia clinged to her mother's dress. Rapunzel finally finished and crouched down to her daughter.

"Why do you have to go momma?" Julia wailed, tears streaming down her face.

"Because daddy needs me. Shhh, it'll be alright. I'll be back before you know it!" she said trying to lift the little girl's spirits.

"With daddy?" Julia asked, looking her mother strait in the eye. Rapunzel sighed. She could not make any promises because everyone knows Rapunzel _never_ broke a promise. "I hope so." She said quietly and hugged Julia.

"Time to go Rapunzel!" the King called. Rapunzel hugged her mother goodbye and kissed her daughters. Soon, the King, Rapunzel, and almost the entire Corona were on their way to find Eugene. After a few hours of traveling, they heard shouting coming from the woods and stopped to see a few beaten up Corona soldiers come stumbling out to meet them.

"Your Majesty! Your Highness!" they ran up to the Kings and Rapunzel's horses. "What happened?" Rapunzel asked anxiously, realizing that these were the guards that Eugene had with him and also that her husband was nowhere to be seen.

"We...were ambushed…max got hurt…he is fine now…but they took him." One said between gasps.

"Who?" Rapunzel asked but she knew who they were addressing.

"Prince Eugene" as soon as she heard this, Rapunzel's heart sank.

"Who took him?" the King demanded.

"The men in black sire" they replied when suddenly Maximus leapt through the bushes, his head erect and concentrated. He sniffed the ground much like a blood hound and whinnied proudly waving his head around.

"He has got Eugene's scent!" Rapunzel cried hopefully and soon, they were all following the white stallion.

….

The King and Rapunzel stared up in amazement at the huge castle that stood before them. Max nodded in agreement. This was the place. The King and Rapunzel exchanged looks and nodded at each other before the king gave out his order. After a great deal of confusion, the soldiers started to climb over the castle walls and busted down the iron gate that was blocking the entrance. Once in, Rapunzel took a soldier with her and hurried into the castle halls and corridors trying to find Eugene. Every time an Elisrian soldier attacked, the Coronan soldier would protect her. They finally found the dark corridors and sneaked down them looking in every cell.

"your highness! Over here!" the soldier loudly whispered and broke the chain lock on the door with his sword. Rapunzel rushed in.

"Eugene!" she cried as she knelt down beside the slumped figure. She lifted her husband's upper body into her lap and called out to him.

"Eugene! Eugene?" She examined her husband and noticed his left arm was bloody. She also noticed his vest was dirty, torn and bloody. Rapunzel unclasped his vest and lifted his shirt to see huge bruises and bloody gashes all over his abdomen.

"Oh, Eugene what have they done to you?" She pulled his shirt back down and called out to him again and again but there was never a response. "Please…don't leave me." She whispered as she started to cry. Just then the King came rushing in.

"We have won and captured…" he immediately stopped once he saw the sight before him.

"Rapunzel? Is he…uh…"

"NO!" Rapunzel screamed "he is NOT dead!"

"I was going to ask if he was breathing." The King stooped down next to her and checked his son-in-law's pulse. "He is alive but barely. We need to get him home _now._"

A few moments later, the soldiers gently and carefully carried Eugene out of the palace and onto a supply wagon they had brought. Rapunzel made sure Eugene was comfortable by placing down straw first then covering it with blankets. Rapunzel held Eugene's upper body in her arms as the army's doctor worked on him.

"I will have to operate as soon as we reach home, your highness." Rapunzel suddenly remembered Samantha.

"no need to doctor. We have Samantha." The doctor smiled but then they both noticed the sky darkening. The doctor sighed. "I don't think we will get home in time, princess."


	25. Chapter 25

Eugene's Treasure: part two

Chapter…um…who cares. Let's get back to Eugene and Rapunzel!

Things didn't look good. Rapunzel sleepily cradled her husband's head as the straw cart pulled them along the dusty road. It was completely dark now. They had been traveling for hours. The moon and the stars were covered by the thick, dark clouds.

Eugene groaned as the cart hit another hard bump. Rapunzel instantly woke up and held Eugene's face.

"Eugene?" She said, her green eyes filled with hope. Eugene had been unconscious the whole ride and now he was just starting to show signs of life. But her face slowly expressed disappointment as Eugene remained silent. Another hour passed until their train of soldiers and horses stopped. Rapunzel saw her father talking to the captain of the guard, Henry. She watched silently until her father came over to her with a frown on his face.

"Wha-what is it?" Rapunzel was afraid to ask but she had to know.

"While we were in Elisria, there was a rock slide and the pass is completely blocked off to Corona. We will have to take the long way which will take about two days."

Rapunzel's heart sank. "But…what about Eugene?" She asked, tears starting to form in her eyes as she looked down at Eugene's limp form then back at her father.

The king sighed. "Eugene's a strong young man. I know he'll make it through. Don't worry."

But Rapunzel was worried. Just then the army's doctor came over to check on Eugene. As he examined his broken arm, he frowned. Then he lifted his shirt and examined his various gashes and large bruises. And also one particular gash that was very deep and wide and his frown seemed to be getting bigger and bigger.

"Eugene's wounds need the proper utensils and ointments. I will take a horse and ride as fast as I can back to the small town near Elisria to get supplies."

Rapunzel didn't like the idea about the doctor leaving but what good would he be if he couldn't properly help Eugene?" She finally nodded and the doctor left with another soldier.

The doctor had told them to keep going and that he would catch up with them so they pressed on.

Another agonizingly slow day of traveling passed and soon it was dark again. Rapunzel tried to get some food and water into her husband.

"Here Eugene, drink this" she said as she lifted his head and brought a cup of water to his mouth. She slowly poured it but it only flowed over his lips and down his neck. After 20 minutes of trying the water, she tried the food but that didn't work either. As she put down the food, the captain of the guard came over and gently lifted Eugene's shirt. He gasped at what he saw. Eugene's deep gash had gotten infected from being in that filthy prison cell.

"Gangrene!" he whispered and Rapunzel's breath caught.

"Alright your highness, I may not be a doctor but I do know this has to be cleaned. I've done these types of infections before and I know that they need to be treated right away."

Rapunzel nodded, fear etching her face. "o-ok I trust you" she said slowly.

Henry nodded and called a nearby soldier. "I'm going to need clean, hot water, a pan of hot coals, a clean, sharp knife, a frying pan and plenty of clean towels or rags." Rapunzel shuddered at the list of supplies as the soldier saluted and hurried off. Her attention was suddenly drawn away as Eugene moaned softly and shifted a bit. Rapunzel's heart skipped a beat.

"Eugene!" She cried as she gently grabbed his shoulders and then his face. Eugene slowly opened his eyes to see blurry images of two people hovering over him.

"Rapunzel?" He asked hoarsely.

"I'm right here Eugene" she brushed his dark hair out of his face. Eugene suddenly started to cough violently. When he stopped, Rapunzel could see his face was full of confusion as a few soldiers came over with a boiling pot of water, steaming heavily along with rags, a knife and a frying pan. He couldn't tell what the other thing was but it looked hot and red through his blurry vision.

"It's ok, where going to help you Eugene" Rapunzel said as Henry cleaned his hands and rolled up his sleeves. Eugene felt Rapunzel gently lift his shirt above his chest which made him slightly nervous.

"This won't feel good Rapunzel so do your best to restrain him and just let me know if you need a soldier to hold him down." Henry said with seriousness in his eyes. Rapunzel swallowed hard as she slowly nodded. Henry had another soldier hold up a lantern as He placed the knife in the hot coals. After a few minutes, the knife was ready and Henry picked it up and slowly and carefully neared it toward the infection. Rapunzel looked back at Eugene's face and placed her hands around it, keeping him looking at her.

"It's going to be alright Eugene. I promise. Just keep looking at me and yell as loud as you want." She said and stared at him sternly yet comforting. Eugene smiled slightly and then prepared for the worst. He grimaced and cried out as the hot knife finally came into contact with his infected skin. Rapunzel kept giving him words of encouragement as his face tightened in pain and he eventually cried out again.

….

As the surgery continued, Rapunzel noticed Eugene getting weaker and weaker with every cry of pain. Rapunzel wiped the sweat from his face with a rag as he breathed heavily and his hands tightly gripped the sheets, turning his knuckles white. He yelled again as Henry finally got the last bit of gangrene out of his wound. He then cleaned it with the hot water as Eugene groaned loudly in pain. After Henry finished, he wrapped Eugene's wound tightly in clean cloth. Eugene kept breathing hard as Rapunzel wiped him down with a damp cloth. Henry washed the blood off his hands and leaned over Eugene.

"You did good kid" He said and started to leave the couple alone but Rapunzel panicked when Eugene started to loose consciousness. "Captain!" she cried.

When Henry saw Eugene he smiled slightly to relax Rapunzel.

"It's alright your highness, he been through a lot. The pain took a lot of strength out of him so he must sleep." He left and Rapunzel held Eugene close to her and she watched him drift off. She was glad the worst was over.

"No more pain Eugene" she whispered and eventually fell asleep next to him.


	26. Chapter 26

**Hey guys! Sorry its been a while on this story! But thx for all the amazing and encouraging reviews! You guys are awesome! Luv u!**

Eugene's Treasure: part 2:

Chapter 26….I think…

Eugene groaned as he groggily opened his eyes. His stomach hurt like hell as well as his arm which he noticed was tightly wrapped in a sling.. Ashe woke up more his memory came back to him. Rapunzel saved him, he went through a painful surgery and then he remembered just blackness. He thought he was dreaming when he took in his surroundings. Four walls, painted a soft shade of blue, long windows with curtains to match, and he was in a large, soft bed. His bed. He was back in the castle. It looked about late afternoon through the windows as the afternoon sun poured in the large room.

He heaved a sigh of relief and let his sore body relax into the mountain of pillows. He was exhausted and so he let his eyes slowly flutter close. Just as he was starting to drift off to sleep, his keen ears picked up the sound of the door quietly click open. He kept his eyes closed and lay motionless but listened.

"What's wrong with daddy, momma?" He could hear Julia whisper.

"He is very sick sweetheart." Rapunzel replied in a hushed whisper.

"But he's gonna get better…right?" Julia asked still whispering.

There was a pause before Rapunzel spoke softly.

"I hope so honey…but you and I are going to have to take good care of him, alright?"

"You mean…we'll be like doctors?" Julia asked, a hint of excitement in her hushed voice.

"Yep! Just like doctors." Rapunzel smiled down at her.

"Will he need…surgerary?" Julia asked. Eugene couldn't help but slightly smile at her incorrect pronunciation.

"No sweetie, he already had one." Rapunzel replied smiling as well.

"Well I'm happy he's finally home!" Julia said, slightly breaking her whisper voice. Eugene felt a bit of guilt pull at his heart. He was sorry for leaving his family for so long.

"me too. We should go before we wake him up." Rapunzel started to herd Julia out the door they were peeking out from when Eugene turned over and called out to Rapunzel, while trying to cover up a groan of pain.

Julia was the first to notice his whisper and ran over to him.

"Daddy!" She shouted ran toward him.

"Hey Jul-"was as far as he got before Julia leapt onto the bed, landing dangerously close to his stomach.

"Ahh...Julia…" he moaned as she hugged him. She was quickly pulled back by Rapunzel who looked 2worried and at the same time overjoyed.

"Eugene!" She cried and hugged him as well.

"Rapunzel" Eugene wheezed painfully. Rapunzel noticed she was causing him pain and pulled away quickly.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" She stammered as she brushed back his hair. Eugene shifted uncomfortably as he gripped his stomach and groaned in pain.

"No, no, no the doctor said you mustn't touch it. It may mess up the stitches and it will only make it hurt more" Rapunzel said as she gently and carefully pried his hand away.

"What happened?" Eugene asked as he fought the urge to grip his wound.

"After the surgery, you where out until we finally arrived home. Then we were eager to heal you with Samantha's hair but you insisted that we didn't use her hair. You said you didn't want to use her like Mo-...Gothel used me. That was right before the doctor gave you some medications for the pain and made you fall asleep while he fixed your arm up and stitched up your stomach wound. That's probably why you don't remember."

Eugene nodded slowly, letting all her information settle in his brain. Now that she mentioned it, he did have a foggy memory of telling them no to Samantha's healing power.

"When was that?" Eugene asked.

"Early this morning." Rapunzel replied adjusting the pillows behind Eugene's back to help him sit up a little better.

Eugene sighed as he let his eyelids relax. His stomach still hurt…maybe he was hungry.

"Are you hungry sweetheart?" Rapunzel asked as if she was reading his mind. **(Or this fan fiction. lol**)

Eugene nodded and Rapunzel gave him a gentle kiss on his forehead and whispered that she loved him which he happily returned. As Rapunzel left, Julia came up to the bed and rested her elbows on it and her head on her elbows. She stared at Eugene's arm.

"What happened to your arm?" She asked tilting her head slightly in the most adorable way.

"Uh…" Eugene started as he tried to remember. "I uh…it broke when I fell off Max."

"You falled off Max?" Julia questioned.

"Well no…I didn't really fall off I…I was thrown off."

"Max throwed you off his back? How? I thought horses didn't have hands." Julia asked, confusion expressed clearly all over her cute face.

"No not like that…He just was just trying to protect me so he reared but I fell off and hit a tree."

"I thought he throwed you off?"

"he did…but not like that."

"oh" Julia muttered quietly while her father rubbed his aching temples.

There was a little pause before Eugene was taken aback by a question from Julia.

"Is momma going to have another baby soon?"

'uh...n-no…not yet anyway."

"Why not?"

"Well…I'm not exactly in great condition to…for another baby."

"Oh" Julia fell silent for a while before she asked the question every parent fears.

"Daddy?"

"Yes Julia?"

"Where do babies come from?"

Eugene tensed and felt the sweat start to form on his forehead.

"Uh…well…" He thought that maybe he should explain this the _Flynn_ way but thought about it again and decided against it. She was only four for crying out loud!

"Hasn't…your mother ever explained it to you?" He asked.

His hope crashed as Julia shook her head and muttered "no"

Oh boy.

"well…babies come from…"

Suddenly Rapunzel opened the door and walked in with a tray of food. Eugene sighed in relief and thanked his lucky stars. Rapunzel had impeccable timing.

"What are you two talking about?" she asked innocently as she placed the tray down on the bed-side table and helped Eugene to sit up more. Eugene winced in pain a few times.

"where do babies some from mommy?" Julia asked again.

Rapunzel glared at Eugene. Eugene held his hands up in defense and shook his head while mouthing. "I didn't say anything"

Rapunzel picked up the tray and gently and carefully placed it over Eugene's sheet-covered lap.

"Well…" she started calmly as she tucked a napkin over Eugene's shirt collar. "When two people love each other...a lot…and they get married…their love boils over and it turns into a baby." She finished, content with her answer.

Eugene stared at her in astonishment, mouth agape. How does she do it?

"Wow!" Julia and Eugene muttered quietly. Eugene also because she had just answered the toughest question…and the kid bought it! Hell _he_ almost believed her!

Rapunzel picked up the spoon on the tray and dipped it into the hot soup. She blew over it softly before holding it up to Eugene's face.

_Wait…what?_

She was met by Eugene's smirk.

"Oh…sorry." She said and quickly placed the spoon back into the bowl and they both chuckled. "I'm just used to feeding little kids I guess."

Eugene laughed. "You can feed me anytime Blondie." Rapunzel blushed a little and laughed in embarrassment and watched Eugene eat his chicken broth. Even Julia giggled a little.

….

A little while later, the King and Queen stopped by to say hello to the prince consort. Eugene got to see Samantha for a little while. She had been napping earlier. Eugene smiled as Rapunzel showed him how she had started to walk a little with the help of an adult. Her beautiful chocolate brown hair was now a little past her waist.

Eventually Rapunzel noticed Eugene's eyes starting to droop as the sky became dark.

"Alright everyone, sorry but Eugene need to rest now." She said quietly as she herded the crowd out of the room. The queen happily took Julia and a sleepy Samantha to the princesses' room and put them to bed.

Rapunzel returned to the room to find Eugene slouched back against the pillows, fast asleep. She softly and gently lifted his head and adjusted the pillows so he wouldn't get a crick in his neck. She laid him back gently and pulled the cover up to his shoulders. She kissed him softly on the cheek and gently and slowly soothed his hair back. His face looked at peace and his chest rose and fell with the steady pace of his slow, sleepy breathing.

"Sweet dreams Eugene."

**Hi peeps! Ok, I think this story is coming to a close soon…BUT DON'T WORRY! I'm planning on posting a story called "Lemonade" its pretty much just a collection of one-shots about Eugene, Rapunzel, their kids from this story and more characters to come! Just everyday life in the castle. Would you guys like that? I'm not sure so please say in your review! (if you review.) Lol please do! Thx!**

**P.S. its called "lemonade" because when life gives you lemons, make lemonade!**

**Thx guys! Luv you!**

**- SparkleWolf**


	27. Chapter 27

Eugene's treasure:

Chapter 27:

Eugene wasn't just angry, he was furious. And it took a lot to make him this mad. He walked out of his room onto the balcony, slamming the glass doors behind him, nearly causing them to shatter.

"Damn it Rapunzel." He muttered darkly under his breath. His body had been perfectly restored and he was completely healthy again and he hated Rapunzel for it. He hated himself for hating her. He knew she was just trying to help but he had strictly told her no, hadn't he? He couldn't recall much of his memories from when he was sick. He knew he had been unwell for a while now but all he remembered of it was pain, pain and confusion and even a bit of anger.

He ran his fingers through his hair in an attempt to calm himself down but the truth was, that he wasn't anywhere near to being calm and he knew it.

He heard a light knock on the glass door behind him.

"Eugene?" He heard a meek voice call out. Her voice was shaky and almost sounded scared.

"Eugene...please…" she called, stepping cautiously out onto the balcony, her bare feet lightly slapping against the cold stone floor each time she took a slow step. Eugene leaned against the balcony's rail and hung his head as he sighed. His breath became visible in the chilly, midnight air.

"What?" He asked quietly, yet sternly. His voice was harsh and cold like the stone they were standing on.

"I didn't mean to…I thought…" Rapunzel stumbled over her words as she tried to keep the tears from building up in her eyes.

"_Rapunzel_." He interrupted sternly turning to face her. "I told you I didn't want to use it. I didn't want to use _her_. Why did you do it when I told you not to?"

"Eugene…I…I had no choice." She said. Eugene persed his lips as he grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her up against the glass doors, causing them to rattle at the harsh, sudden contact.

Rapunzel gasped when he slammed her up against the doors. Her green eyes were wide with fear as she stared up at him, his eyes burning through hers.

"You always have a choice Rapunzel!" He said loudly, still gripping her small shoulders tightly and shook her a bit.

"Eugene…I…the doctor…" she struggled with her words. Her vision was becoming blurry with tears.

"Why did you heal me with her hair? I would've been fine!" He said, raising his voice.

"the doctor said…"

"What?"

"He said you were dying!" She squeaked and squeezed her eyes and started to sob as she began to slide down the door. Eugene took a moment to process what she had just told him before his expression softened and he shushed her lovingly. He immediately felt guilty for attacking her like that and bent down to her level. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her bridal-style back into their bedroom. She gripped his vest as he laid her down on the large bed, silently begging him to hold her tight. He laid down with her, holding her safely in his strong arms, comforting her by rubbing circles into her skin with his thumb.

"I'm sorry Blondie." He whispered as he held her tighter and kissed her head. "I'm sorry."

She cried and buried her face in the crook of his neck. "I missed you…so much…when you were sick…" she mumbled through sobs. "I was so scared Eugene…I didn't know what to do."

Eugene shushed her sweetly and pulled her back to look at her face. "Don't be sorry Blondie, Im sorry. I just didn't want to be like Gothel and use Samantha for her abilities." He said quietly and then kissed her on the lips. He held them there until her sobs subsided and she kissed him back. Eugene held her closer, pulling her body flush against his. Without breaking the kiss, Eugene managed to sit up and hover over Rapunzel. She felt small and helpless as he leaned over her and broke the kiss to suck her neck lightly.

Rapunzel's eyes slowly fluttered closed as she let him take her that night, completely giving herself into him. They had hardly spent time together for a while now because of Eugene's growing infection but now with that out of the way, they finally got some time to be alone and to be one.

**BA-BOOM! And it's finished! I now this chappie was really crappy and short but its really just a fill in for the official ending of this story. So that's all folks! I hope the last part wasn't too awkward but that was the best way I knew to put it without changing the rating to M…so to answer your question, Pochohontasjohnsmithforever, this is where Flynnigan comes from…yeah…ANYWAY! Thank you guys fro all your great support and awesome reviews! You guys are the best and I love you! Please check out my other story "Lemonade" because it's about everyday life with all of the characters from this story plus many new faces! THANK YOU ALL AND GOD BLESS! **


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